Foreign Minister Abba Eban of Israel told a large audience here last night that President Anwar Sadat of Egypt was now ready to enter into a peace settlement with Israel provided that Egypt wrote its terms and Israel merely signed. Nevertheless, the Israeli diplomat said, the outlook was better than a year ago when Sadat adhered to the Khartoum formula of no recognition, no negotiations and no peace with Israel. Eban addressed 4,500 persons in the grand ballroom of the Queen Elizabeth Hotel at a meeting arranged by the Montreal Jewish Community Council. Thousands listened outside where his speech was conveyed by loudspeakers.
Eban reiterated his five points for peace, including immediate negotiations with Egypt, which he proposed in his speech before the United Nations General Assembly last Thursday. If Egypt rejects each and every one of the points it will bear a heavy responsibility, he said. He said Israel’s highest aim was peace but added “partial withdrawal yes, but total withdrawal, never.” He referred to the Sinai, the Golan Heights and other occupied Arab territories. Eban said the Sharm el-Sheikh strongpoint at the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula was “a development of the Negev,” Israel’s link with the African states and its oil supplies, and “the difference between life and death for an independent Israel.”
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