Former Prime Minister James Callaghan of Britain said here yesterday that “there is no room for negotiations” with the Palestine Liberation Organization unless it changed its attitude toward Israel “and I haven’t yet heard that they were ready to make those changes.” Callaghan, leader of the opposition Labor Party spoke to reporters after an hour-long meeting with Premier Menachem Begin.
He declined comment on Sunday’s Cabinet decision to expand Jewish settlements on the West Bank without expropriating Arab-owned lands. But on the settlements issue, he said he did not take the view that “they were helpful to peace.” He said he opposed any changes in UN Security Council Resolution 242 but observed that “we passed the stage where resolutions are important. There is direct contact now between the parties that did not have it for 30 years and I think it is the best means of progress.”
Speaking at the annual Balfour Day dinner last night, attended by Begin, Callaghan said that although he regards Palestinian participation as essential to the peace process in the Middle East, he believes the Palestinians could be brought in at a later stage after autonomy has been established. Even then, he did not rule out the possibility that some parties would have to be excluded from participation in the autonomy elections because they posed a threat to Israel’s security.
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