Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan briefed Britain’s leaders today on his country’s latest proposals for ending the Middle East diplomatic deadlock. He met with them after a 12-hour celebration of Israel’s 30th anniversary here yesterday in which an estimated 100,000 persons from all parts of the United Kingdom participated. It was described as the biggest spectacle ever organized by Anglo-Jewry. Dayan called on Prime Minister James Callaghan this afternoon following a lunch and hour-long meeting with Foreign Secretary David Owen. The luncheon was also attended by Lord Carrington and Jeremy Thorpe, foreign affairs spokesmen respectively of the Conservative and Liberal parties, which gave Dayan the opportunity to present Israel’s views to the opposition leadership.
He was reported to have covered much the same ground that he did in his meetings with Secretary of State Cyrus Vance in Washington two weeks ago. One official described Dayan’s presentation as “routine” inasmuch as the Israeli Cabinet has yet to reformulate its positions in light of the latest exchanges with the U.S. No change in Israel’s views was evident from Dayan’s 45-minute address to a 30th anniversary rally attended by nearly 20,000 at Earls Court last night.
Dayan acknowledged that the PLO was the leader of the Palestinian people but ruled out any contacts with them. He flatly rejected a Palestinian state on the West Bank and Gaza Strip on grounds that it would not serve as a humanitarian solution of the refugee problem but as a springboard for the destruction of Israel. He said, however, that Israel wanted to live in peace with the Palestinians.
“We do not want to rule them or replace them or drive them away,” Dayan said. “We want to live next to them, as we do now in Jerusalem. We also want them to determine their own future but we don’t want them to determine our future.”
The Israeli Foreign Minister insisted that Israel had responded adequately to Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s peace initiative and claimed that its offers were generous. He blamed Egypt for the present negotiations impasse. He said that if there was no further diplomatic progress, Israel would have to exist without peace as it has done for the last 30 years. He said that while a peace settlement was preferable, the status quo had its compensations such as freedom of access for Jews to the West Bank.
FESTIVE MOOD AT CELEBRATION
Dayan came to Britain to participate in the 30th anniversary celebration yesterday. It was highlighted by displays of various aspects of Israeli and Anglo-Jewish life. Thousands of persons visited a replica of an Israeli supermarket, fashion shows, bookstalls and various exhibitions of Israeli products ranging from pottery to electronic equipment.
A galaxy of Israeli and British entertainers participated in variety shows. They included the Alfa-Beta group that recently won the Eurovision pop music contest; singers Shlomo Nitzan and Esther Ofarim, actress Hannah Meron and the American harmonic virtuoso Larry Adler.
Police and members of the ex-Servicemen’s Association provided tight security. London “Bobbies” escorted 8000 Jewish youngsters to the Earls Court arena, singing and shouting Hebrew slogans. A contingent from Scotland headed by a youth band playing bagpipes led the parade which passed through a heavily Arab-populated district. A group of Arab sympathizers kept up a day-long vigil calling for Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon.
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