President Nixon and Communist-Party Secretary General Leonid I. Brezhnev have agreed to continue their support of the Jarring mission in pursuit of a settlement of the Israeli-Arab conflict. In a joint communique closing the week-long Soviet-American summit conference, the leaders of the two countries today declared: “The two sides set their positions on this question. They reaffirm their support for a peaceful settlement in the Middle East in accordance with Security Council Resolution 242.
“Noting the significance of constructive cooperation of the parties concerned with the special representative of the United Nations Secretary General (Kurt Waldheim), Ambassador (Gunnar V.) Jarring, the United States and the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics confirm their desire to contribute to his mission’s success and also declare their readiness to play their part in bringing about a peaceful settlement in the Middle East. In the view of the US and the USSR, the achievement of such a settlement would open prospects for the normalization of the Middle East situation and would permit in particular, consideration of further steps to bring about a military relaxation in that area.”
Dr. Henry Kissinger, Nixon’s advisor on national security affairs, told newsmen, “There were discussions between Brezhnev and Nixon. This is a subject (the Middle East) on which a great deal depends on the parties concerned and the power of outside parties is limited. Both sides favor progress.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
