Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Kamal Hassan Ali for four hours in Cairo today. They reportedly discussed preparations for Israel’s final withdrawal from Sinai April 25 and related bilateral matters. Shamir is expected to meet with President Hosni Mubarak on Thursday, before returning to Israel.
Hassan Ali, who greeted the Israeli Foreign Minister at Cairo airport last night, pledged that Egypt would spare no efforts to promote cooperation with Israel and to ensure a comprehensive peace. Shamir expressed hope that the peaceful relations between their two countries would “deepen and expand” because “the more it takes fruit, the more it will enable us to solve other problems and bring in new participants.”
Shamir stressed that Israel shares Egypt’s interest in bringing other countries into the peace process. Hassan Ali had suggested earlier that Israel should take measures to build confidence that would induce “other parties” to join in the peace initiative.
ACCORDS ON CONSULATES
There was reported agreement between the two Foreign Ministers today that Egypt would open a consulate at Eilot and Israel one in Alexandria, possibly on the same day that Israel completes its withdrawal from Sinai. Other matters reportedly dealt with security measures on the Egyptian side of the border and an Egyptian suggestion that the Palestinian residents of Rafah be allowed to choose which side they want to live in after Israel pulls out. Rafah is bisected by the international border.
Transportation fees and the advertisement of Israeli products in Egypt were also discussed. There was no confirmation of reports that Hassan Ali rejected a proposal by Shamir that Israel and Egypt publish a joint declaration of principles dealing with Palestinian autonomy on the West Bank and Gaza Strip before Israel’s withdrawal date from Sinai.
DATE STILL PENDING FOR MUBARAK VISIT
Shamir reportedly will try to negotiate in advance the draft of a joint statement to be issued after Mubarak meets with Premier Menachem Begin in Jerusalem. There was no indication today when Mubarak will make his visit to Israel which had been expected this month, though no date was set. Shamir is expected to raise that matter when he meets with the Egyptian President. Their meeting was set for Shamir’s final day in Egypt because Mubarak is presently confined to bed with the flu.
Israeli correspondents accompanying Shamir said today that Israel would find it difficult to extract any flexibility from the Egyptian leader at a time when he is trying to re-establish Egypt’s good relations with the Arab world.
Meanwhile, Richard Fairbanks, Secretary of State Alexander Haig’s special envoy to the Israeli-Egyptian autonomy negotiations, left Cairo for Washington today after several days of meetings with Egyptian officials. He is expected to return to Cairo March I to attend a meeting of the two negotiating teams. Fairbanks was in Israel last week.
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.
