Premier Yitzhak Rabin said yesterday that once an agreement is signed on the Sinai it will give Israel an opportunity to test whether Egypt wants war or peace. Speaking at various Negev settlements, Rabin revealed that the interim agreement now being negotiated would put the Egyptians 25 to 30 miles east of the Suez Canal while Israel would be 155 miles west of the line held prior to the Six-Day War.
The Premier also noted that Israel would be positioned so near the Abu Rodeis oilfields that it would not be worthwhile for Egypt to violate the agreement. He noted that there has been an advancement in Egypt’s position on the longevity of the agreement to that which existed when Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger’s “shuttle diplomacy” broke down in March.
Rabin stressed that he did not see any danger in the territorial concessions Israel is willing to make. “If anyone tries to present this as a national disaster, that is only spreading despondency and panic,” he declared. The Premier also stressed that while there is no pressure from the United States, Israel always had to consider American views.
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