Egyptian as well as United States sources in Egypt yesterday denied reports from Israel that Egyptian assent to a formal peace treaty or non-aggression pact with Israel had been advanced as a prerequisite to Egypt’s eligibility for American aid, the New York Times reported today in a cable from Cairo.
The report says that an Egyptian official source acknowledged that U.S. Ambassador Jefferson Caffery had expressed the United States hopes for peace in the Middle East, but had stopped far short of setting Egyptian agreement to make peace with Israel as a price for aid, Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Dr. Mamoud Fawzi, is reported to have replied that the current armistice agreement with Israel was sufficient guarantee against a renewal of hostilities by Egypt.
The Cairo report also states that Ambassador Caffery yesterday called on the Egyptian Foreign Minister and discussed with him for forty minutes the principles governing a United States offer of military and economic assistance. The United States diplomat is reported to have presented documents outlining the varying requirements for eligibility for the two types of aid. These are virtually the same as those in effect in more than thirty countries already receiving aid, the report said.
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