Israeli Ambassador Chaim Herzog told the General Assembly that Israel is willing to begin “immediately a direct and open dialogue” with each of its Arab neighbors and called on the world body to rise to the historic development made possible by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s visit to Jerusalem last weekend by contributing to peace in the Middle East instead of engaging in acrimonious debate.
Herzog, who was addressing the Assembly Friday during the course of the debate on the Middle East, hailed the meeting between Sadat and Premier Menachem Begin of Israel and said it indicated Israel’s position “that only direct face-to-face negotiations on the basis of mutual respect and dignity can move our war-torn area towards peace.”
EVERYTHING MUST BE NEGOTIABLE
He added that in the process of negotiations with the Arabs, at Geneva or elsewhere, “everything must be negotiable” as Begin reemphasized last week. Contending that Sadat’s visit was the first step toward resolving the Mideast conflict, Herzog cautioned, however, that long and arduous negotiations lie ahead.
The Israeli envoy was highly critical of the United Nations and the debate on the Mideast which, he said, “reverberates once again with bitterness and vituperation, and is asked to consider a resolution of condemnation (of Israel for its continued occupation of Arab territories) which ignores the dramatic events in Jerusalem as though they never were.” Noting the resolution would hamper “at this crucial turning point in history” the chances for peace, Herzog declared:
“Let me re-echo the call of Prime Minister Begin to all our neighbors to reject warmongering and hate, to seize the opportunity offered by the courageous initiative taken in the Middle East and to join us in serious negotiations on substantive issues.”
UN ASSEMBLY CONDEMNS ISRAEL
Despite this plea, the General Assembly voted 102-4 late Friday afternoon to condemn Israel’s continued occupation of Arab territories and also proposed resumption of the Geneva conference with the participation of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
The United States, Canada, Israel and El Salvador voted against the resolution, 29 member states abstained and China and Iraq were among the 14 nations which did not participate in the vote. Egypt, which was the target during the debate of criticism from Syria and other Arab countries for Sadat’s visit, voted for the resolution.
The vote ended four days of general debate on the Mideast which Syria had initiated despite many Western and Third World delegates who said it would be appropriate to postpone such a resolution pending the outcome of talks between Sadat and Begin.
SOVIET VIEW OUTLINED
One development in the debate was a more detailed outline by the Soviet delegate Oleg Toryanovsky, of Soviet views on possible security guarantees to encourage Israeli withdrawal from Arab territories.
He said such withdrawal Could be followed by creation of demilitarized zones on both sides of the frontiers and that UN observers or a UN peace force could be provided for clearly-defined periods. He said guarantees might be given by the Security Council or by individual states. He listed these as the Soviet Union, Britain, France and the United States. Troyanovsky said he had voted for the Syrian resolution because Soviet policy was not influenced by individual events, even spectacular ones, an allusion to the Sadat visit to Israel.
A number of Third World and Western countries praised the Sadat visit. Iran, for example, lauded Sadat’s “courageous initiative.” Libya, which broke off diplomatic relations with Egypt over Sadat’s visit, avoided a direct attack on Sadat but suggested that his sojourn to Israel was made in “collusion” with “imperialists and Zionists.”
OTHER ASSEMBLY ACTIONS DUE
Meanwhile, the Assembly is scheduled to begin tomorrow another Mideast debate, focused on the “rights” of Palestinian Arabs. Herzog predicted that at least 20 more anti-Israel resolutions would be submitted before the current Assembly session ends in December.
The Security Council is scheduled to meet to extend the mandate of the UN peace-keeping force in the Golan Heights, which will expire Nov. 30. Israel has already informed UN officials it will agree to another six-month extension of the UNEF mandate. Syria has remained silent on the matter. In the past, Syria has sought to attach to its extension agreements conditions favorable to the PLO. Observers here agreed that with most of its armed forces tied down in Lebanon, Syria had no choice but to agree to an extension but that it would hold out to the last minute.
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