Official sources here were careful not to react Thursday night and Friday to news of President Ford’s interview in Hearst newspapers in which he blamed Israeli intransigence for the failure of Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger’s latest Mideast effort.
Privately, officials tended to hope that Kissinger’s news conference last Wednesday in Washington in which he carefully avoided apportioning blame–represented a more up-to-date and more balanced U.S. official position. They noted that Ford had given his interview March 24, before Kissinger’s press conference and when the President was reportedly highly angered and upset by the failure of the shuttle effort. They ventured to hope–privately–that Washington might since then have cooled its wrath.
Some well placed sources here said–again in private briefings–that Geneva is not necessarily the sole available option at this stage. They mentioned “proximity talks” as a possible alternative, noting that when during the Kissinger shuttle the prospect of failure was aired, the possibility of “proximity talks” was raised.
It was noted here that Egypt so far has been less enthusiastic in public than might have been expected over the reconvening of the Geneva conference. “Proximity talks” were first mooted back in 1971 by the U.S. but they never got off the ground. Kissinger, it was recalled, was considering reviving the idea in October 1973 when the war pre-empted him.
INFORMATION CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED
Meanwhile, sources here reported that Israeli Ambassador, Simcha Dinitz, has so far been encouraging in his reports to Jerusalem about meetings with leading Congressional figures as part of Israel’s campaign to explain the breakdown of the shuttle.
The Israel Foreign Ministry is sending high-powered delegations to the U.S. and elsewhere to help in the information work. The first team will be led by former information and intelligence head Aharon Yariv, former Air Force head Dan Tolkowsky, former intelligence chief Meir Amit, and Commerce and Industry Minister Haim Barlev. (See related stories.)
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