Middle East Talks Suspended Rabin Says All Parties Would Now Want to Reassess Their Positions Before

Premier Yitzhak Rabin said here today all the parties involved would now want to reassess their positions before decisions were taken on future moves towards a Mideast settlement. The Premier declined to predict what such future moves might be. He “hoped” a “renewal of the present efforts lies ahead of us,” but he implied that no arrangements had been made for Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger’s imminent return to the region.

The Premier spoke at a news conference in Jerusalem after seeing off the Secretary 12 hours after it was announced here that the shuttle mission had been “suspended.” Rabin paid “special tribute” to American efforts to promote a settlement and he expressed his faith that friendship between the U.S. and Israel was “deep-rooted” and could weather “ups and downs.”

LETTER FROM FORD ON NEGOTIATIONS

He confirmed press reports here today that he had received last week from President Ford a letter regarding the negotiations–but refused to divulge its content, explaining that such correspondence was a part of the “special relationship” between the two states and could not be published. The two evening newspapers and the radio reported that the letter from Ford had been couched in extremely tough language that had left the Cabinet in a state of shook.

Rabin at his press conference claimed that press descriptions of the letter had been exaggerated and distorted. But inside sources have revealed privately that the letter did indeed give Israel’s Cabinet during its marathon meetings Thursday much bitter food for thought. Ford reportedly suggested that Israel, by its intransigence, was jeopardizing the security of the world and that the American people would not support such a position.

(See separate story regarding letter.)

Rabin conceded that the “special relationship” between Washington and Jerusalem had indeed been a major factor in Israel’s deliberation. “I do not want to speculate as to the outcome of the present situation,” he said, queried as to the effect of the breakdown of Kissinger’s efforts on the relationship. “But I tend to believe that our friendship is deep rooted and can survive ups and downs.”

The friendship, said Rabin, was based on common interests, a common heritage and mutual understanding, Israel, he continued, held a special place in the hearts of the American people, Congress, Ford and Kissinger. He went out of his way to praise Ford as well as Kissinger for their “unbelievable efforts and risks” in the effort to attain a settlement.

Rabin stressed that Israel had always sought