French Foreign Minister Christian Pineau declared in a radio interview here this week-end that the essential problem in the situation between Israel and the Arab states was mutual fear of aggression M. Pineau, who had just returned from a meeting in Cairo with Egyptian Premier Gamal Abdel Nasser, was asked whether he thought the possibility of an Arab-Israel conflict was a real one. He replied. “At the moment, there is conflict between Israel and the Arab countries which bears on a number of precise problems. But the essential one, in my opinion, is the mutual fear on each side that they’ll be attacked.”
“The practical problems,” M. Pineau continued, “are difficult to solve. I readily recognize that. There are problems–the refugees, the Jordan River, Zionist immigration–which are in themselves extremely complex. But, psychologically, I think an effort has to be made to give both sides a guarantee that they won’t be attacked by one or the other. This fear of aggression actually completely dominates Middle East policy. I believe the Western Powers, as well as the UN, have to do everything to try to ease the atmosphere. Insofar as France is concerned, we are resolutely opposed to everything which could lead to a conflict in the part of the world.”
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