Foreign Minister Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin have rejected an American compromise proposal to resolve the Israeli-Egyptian border dispute over Taba, and decided to continue with international arbitration in Geneva.
Under the U.S. proposal, submitted to Jerusalem and Cairo three months ago, Egypt would be given sovereignty over the whole area while Israel would be granted full and more or less free access to the Taba region.
The proposal also provides for some form of continuing Israeli ownership of the Sonesta Hotel and the Rafi Nelson “village” at the site.
The Israeli leaders and their advisers are believed to feel that Israel has a sufficiently good case to warrant going on to international arbitration.
Israeli papers say that Premier Yitzhak Shamir has not been consulted about the American proposals but is understood to be “open to compromise — but it depends on what sort of compromise.”
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