President Carter has asked a number of prominent American Jewish community leaders to meet with him at the White House tomorrow night at what was unofficially described as “a small private dinner” to discuss Middle East affairs.
The dinner meeting will take place shortly after Egyptian President Anwar Sadat ends his six-day Washington visit and leaves for Europe where he will continue his campaign to muster opinion for Israel to withdraw totally from the occupied areas and allow the Palestinian Arabs “self-determination “that is expected to bring about a Palestinian state.
Among those invited are: Rabbi Alexander Schindler, chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Philip Klutznick, president of the World Jewish Congress who saw Sadat privately and with a Jewish group yesterday at Blair House; Richard Maass, president of the American Jewish Committee; Edward Sanders, Los Angeles lawyer who is a former chairman of the America-Israel Public Affairs Committee; Frank Lautenberg, chairman of the United Jewish Appeal; and Max Greenberg, the Los Angeles lawyer who is chairman of the B’nai B’rith Anti-Defamation League Executive Committee. Greenberg is substituting for ADL president Burton Joseph who is unable to attend.
MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS
Following his return to Washington Sunday night from Camp David where he had conferred for two days with Sadat, Carter met with Sen. Jacob K. Javits (R.NY), Richard Stone (D.Fla.), Abraham Ribicoff (D.Conn.) and Rep. Sidney Yates (D. Ill.), the dean of the Jewish members of Congress. Vice President Walter Mondale was also present.
Mondale, Assistant Secretary of State Alfred Atherton, who is returning soon to the Middle East for shuttle diplomacy between Jerusalem and Cairo, and David Aaron, deputy chief of the National Security Council, held meetings yesterday with Senate and House leaders regarding the Sadat visit.
Sadat met with selected media writers and editors at Blair House last night. Neither the Israeli press corps nor representatives of the American Jewish press were invited although they were allowed to participate in Sadat’s news conference here last spring.
With no departures having been noted in Sadat’s basic terms with Israel that run counter to Israel’s requirements for security and political future, Capitol Hill sources indicated that the White House agrees with Sadat that the Jewish community leaders should be moved to influence the Israeli government into backing down on its position. One source said the matter involves primarily “the settlements issue, but it probably goes beyond that.”
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