Senegalese President Leopold Senghor believes it is too early to discuss the resumption of diplomatic relations between his country and Israel. In an interview with Maariv’s correspondent in Africa, Tamar Golan, Senghor said the Egyptian-Israeli pact was a step in the right direction, but he expressed his disappointment that there was no Palestinian representation in the upcoming autonomy talks. Senghor said he did not believe. Premier Menachem Begin was ready to take the necessary measures to solve the Palestinian problem.
In a separate interview, Zaire Foreign Minister Negoze Carl I’Bondi told Maariv his country would resist any attempt to oust Egypt from the Organization for African Unity (OAU). “Egypt is a sovereign country, which has the full right to take decisions pertaining to its security….Egypt is an African country and we treat her as such,” he said.
I’Bondi further suggested the OAU should reconsider the question of resuming diplomatic ties with Israel. “Once the decision is taken, it should become the individual decision of each country whether to resume relations, and when,” he said.
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