Details were made public here today of a so-called “Italian plan” for a Mideast settlement that would start the ball rolling toward peace by setting up an international commission to limit and control the inflow of heavy arms to the area. The proposed commission would be made up of the delegates of the four Big Powers–United States, Soviet Russia, Britain and France–and a further six members, three from the West and three from the Eastern bloc. It would keep an eye on the arms balance, both quantitative and qualitative and would try to diminish tensions by getting both sides to adhere to the June, 1967 cease-fire agreements. The plans call for a pledge, apparently from Israel, not to unilaterally alter the Juridical status of the occupied territories or their inhabitants.
The plan has already been given wide publicity in Egypt by the semi-official Cairo daily Al Ahram. Foreign Ministry officials who released it here said it should not be called an “Italian plan” but rather an “Italian suggestion.” Proponents of the plan say that after these first steps are accomplished, it would be easier to implement the United Nations Security Council’s Nov. 22.1967 Mideast resolution. They say they have been encouraged by the fact that the plan has not been rejected by either side and there are requests for “more detailed plans” from some interested countries. The countries weren’t identified.
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