Dr. Nahum Goldmann president of the World Jewish Congress. maintained today that there would be no solution to the problem of Jews in the Soviet Union as long as there is no settlement in the Middle East He also indicated that he expected an official invitation shortly to visit the USSR but said he would not accept it unless certain conditions are met in advance.
Speaking to reporters at Lod Airport before leaving for Paris, Dr. Goldmann said he would not visit the Soviet Union unless he could do so as the head of a WJC delegation; unless he was given an opportunity to thoroughly discuss the Jewish question with Russian leaders, including Premier Alexei Kosygin; and unless he was convinced beforehand that he would not return empty handed. But Dr. Goldmann said he was not optimistic about Soviet readiness to make concessions on the Jewish problem as long as the Middle East conflict remains unresolved.
“Without an arrangement in the Middle East it is very difficult for the Russians to make concessions. But I am ready to wait one or two years as I am optimistic about an arrangement in the Middle East,” Dr. Goldmann said. He said that future action toward a Middle East settlement depended on the outcome of President Nixon’s talks with Soviet Communist Party chief Leonid Brezhnev in Washington this summer. As long as the U.S. and the USSR have not reached an understanding over the Middle East problem, it would be very difficult to reach an agreement on the scene, he said.
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