Diplomatic sources today reported that the UN Middle East peace negotiator Dr. Gunnar V. Jarring was again attempting to get the stalled peace talks “off the ground.” Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Yosef Tekoah, who returned to New York from Jerusalem on Monday evening, yesterday notified Dr. Jarring of Israel’s decision not to participate in the peace talks until the Egyptians removed their missiles from the Canal zone area. Despite Israel’s decision, diplomats here were cautiously optimistic that when the Foreign Ministers arrived next week for the opening of the General Assembly, Israel would reconsider its decision and resume the talks. Their optimism was based on hints of compromise found in a recent statement of Israel’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Shimon Peres, who said that “if it were impossible to restore the pre-cease-fire military situation then maybe a new agreement can be negotiated.” It was believed a new agreement would find the Egyptians and Russians agreeing to a “token” rollback of some missiles and a more detailed cease-fire agreement that would leave no room for differences of interpretation.
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