Foreign Minister Abba Eban gave three reasons today in justification of Israel’s Middle East policy. Addressing visiting American collegians, Eban stressed that a nation should not give up long-term interests for short-term harmony; that there is sometimes a time lag between the adoption of a position and recognition of it by others, as in the case of Israel’s independence; and that there is no objective basis for regarding Israel’s position as intransigent. In the last year alone, Eban noted, Israel accepted a de facto cease-fire despite the risk of its being used to pressure her; Israel accepted an indirect negotiating procedure against its convictions; Israel endorsed the Nov. 22, 1967 resolution of the United Nations Security Council although the Arab interpretation of it was contrary to Israel’s and to the very language of the resolution itself; Israel returned to the Jarring talks despite Egyptian missile violations; and concrete, detailed Israeli peace proposals were ignored by the Arab governments. Eban called on Egypt to prove her desire for peace by negotiating the issues involved instead of threatening war. A military course, he said, would not bring peace but would lead Israel to strengthen her security and her resolve and would increase Soviet influence in Egypt.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
