Qualified sources here said today that a much more positive and healthier relationship exists between Jerusalem and Washington now than when Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger’s efforts to negotiate an Israeli-Egyptian second-stage agreement were suspended last March 22. The sources said the change was reflected in Kissinger’s reports after his meetings with members of Congress and that, in view of the letter signed by 76 Senators urging continued American economic and military assistance to Israel, the Ford Administration cannot return to blaming Israel for the breakdown of the talks.
The Administration is no longer able, the source said, to pass the word that support for Israel has eroded in Congress, the media and the American people. The sources observed that while the differences have not disappeared, the atmosphere has improved because Egypt has not asked for additional concessions from Israel and the Ford Administration, perhaps reluctantly, is moving away from its fault-finding into a more friendly approach to the situation.
The assessment of the situation was made on the eve of Israeli Premier Yitzhak Rabin’s arrival here tomorrow for meetings with President Ford and Secretary Kissinger beginning Wednesday. The sources indicated that progress toward a Middle East settlement would depend on whether Egypt re-examines its position toward an interim accord with Israel and the extent of a general understanding of American support for Israel’s security to be reached at the Ford-Rabin meetings.
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