Political sources in Jerusalem described U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance today as a “decent man who understood Israel’s situation.” Although there was no effort to minimize the differences of opinion which occurred often with the Secretary of State during the long and winding road for the peace and autonomy negotiations, the Israelis recalled the patience and fairness which characterized Vance’s treatment of Israel.
Word of Vance’s resignation was received here with little surprise. Israeli officials were aware of Vance’s inclination not to continue in office. The general reaction here was of regret.
Although Israeli experts on the U.S. blamed Vance for the United Nations Security Council resolution of March 1 condemning Israeli settlements on the West Bank and the U.S. vote in support of it, they noted that there was no indication that other American statement would have acted differently.
The contacts between Vance and Israel go back to the 1960s when Vance served as Under-secretary of Defense. He was directly involved with the supply of Skyhawk warplanes to Israel and prepared the background to the supply of the more sophisticated Phantoms in the early 1970s.
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