Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger met yesterday with Secretary General Kurt Waldheim and afterwards with General Assembly President Abdelaziz, Bouteflika about a wide range of topics, including the Middle East and about what the United States has termed one-sided and arbitrary decisions taken by the Assembly.
The meeting occurred two weeks after John Scali, the U.S. Ambassador to the UN, charged that American support for the UN was eroding because of the one-sided and unrealistic resolutions passed by the world body and the “tyranny of the majority” in forcing through these resolutions. The majority Scali referred to were the African, Asian, Arab and Communist members of the Assembly.
“It is our view,” Kissinger told reporters after the meetings, “that the interdependence of the world requires that problems be solved cooperatively and not through confrontations between blocs that might be formed arbitrarily.” Asked if he would be returning to the Middle East, Kissinger replied, “I don’t envisage a trip to the Middle East immediately, but that seems to be my destiny to go there.”
Asked if-Bouteflika had discussed the PLO, Kissinger said, “Mr. Bouteflika expressed his view on the subject, and our views on the subject are well known.” The U.S. voted against inviting Arafat, chief of the Palestine Liberation Organization, to address the Assembly, but Bouteflika supported the invitation. Regarding the Mideast, the Secretary stated that “there is no dramatic new development.” He added, “We are hopeful that progress can be made and we believe that it will be made.” Kissinger had separate talks of more than one hour each with Waldheim and Bouteflika.
The Secretary’s meeting with Bouteflika was the first high-level meeting between Algerian and American officials since the two countries resumed diplomatic relations last month. Bouteflika, Algeria’s Foreign Minister, has been criticized by some Western diplomats for according Yasir Arafat with a head-of-state reception; for pressuring the Assembly to agree to prevent South Africa from participating in the remainder of the Assembly sessions; and abrogating Israeli Ambassador Yosef Tekoah’s right to speak during the debate on Palestine.
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