Premier Yitzhak Shamir sent a message of warm greetings today to President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt to mark the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Israel-Egypt peace treaty. Shamir expressed his hope for “development” of the relations between the two countries and also expressed his confidence that the treaty would be a “cornerstone” for broader Middle East peace.
Shamir’s aides said his message was especially significant because it follows some harsh statements by the Premier accusing Egypt of failure to abide by the spirit of the peace treaty in its cool relations with Israel.
Meanwhile, Abba Eban, the Labor Party’s foreign affairs spokesman, is scheduled to visit Egypt next week at the invitation of top government figures there. Eban expects to meet with Mubarak. This would be a relatively rare dialogue between a leading Israeli personality (albeit from the opposition) and the Egyptian leader.
Just back from Egypt on a private business visit, Haim Zadok, a Justice minister in the former Labor government, told reporters that the Egyptians are presently occupied with their own elections to be held in May. But, he said, they are clearly interested in promoting ties with Israel’s Labor movement. Zadok met with former Premier Mustafa Khalil and Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Butros Ghali.
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