Israel reacted swiftly tonight to statements attributed to Egyptian Prime Minister Mustapha Khalil and Foreign Minister Boutros Ghali which, it said, “contradicts the peace treaty” Israel and Egypt signed last month. A Foreign Ministry spokesman said tonight that Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan dispatched a letter to Secretary of State Cyrus Vance on the matter.
He said a copy of Dayan’s letter was sent to President Anwar Sadat by Premier Menachem Begin accompanied by a personal message from Begin. The spokesman refused to divulge the contents of the letter. Khalil and Ghali were reported to have made their remarks to the foreign relations committee the of the Egyptian People’s Assembly (Parliament).
Khalil was quoted as having said that in the event Syria attempted to regain the Golan Heights, Egypt would be justified in aiding Syria because the Syrians were acting in self-defense: He also reportedly called on the Arab states to use their oil weapon to force the U.S. to pressure Israel to withdraw from all occupied Arab territories, including East Jerusalem.
Ghali was reported to have said that Egypt could continue to assist the Palestine Liberation Organization regardless of the peace treaty with Israel because the PLO was engaged in a war of liberation.
Some diplomatic observers here contended that the Egyptian ministers were probably attempting to pacify growing opposition to Egypt in the Arab world and for this reason alone their remarks should not be exaggerated out of proportion. But they agreed that Israel should take up the matter with both Egypt and the U.S. to prevent similar expressions in the future.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Hodding Carter said he received only “fragmentary reports” but “no independent information” about the Khalil and Ghali statements. He said the Department is in touch with the U.S. Embassy in Cairo but “at this point we have no comment.”)
SADAT SENDS CABLE TO BEGIN
Meanwhile, Begin has received a cable from Sadat acknowledging the message of thanks Begin sent Sadat after his return from Cairo last week. Sadat’s cable said. “I want to express my deep hope that the talks we had together during your visit here are a positive step in the direction of an everlasting and just peace in the Middle East. I pray to God that he will crown with success our efforts and those of our people to achieve peace and stability in the region.”
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