Defense Minister Ezer Weizman conferred with President Anwar Sadat of Egypt for two hours today near Cairo under a light veil of secrecy but apparently did not succeed in breaking the impasse that has stalled Israeli-Egyptian peace talks since January.
A spokesman for Sadat, quoted by Cairo radio, said “The stalemate in the situation continues until Israel changes its position and progress is achieved. The military and political committees will not resume their work unless Israel changes its position.”
Political circles here conceded that the outlook seemed bleak, at least on the basis of the initial reports of the Sadat-Weizman meeting. They noted, however, that no major break-through had been expected, that Weizman went to Cairo chiefly to see if the Egyptians would agree to resume direct talks with Israel and that he was not armed by the Cabinet with any fresh proposals.
INVITED BY GAMASSY
Although the Defense Minister’s trip was a subject of speculation in the media all week, the Cabinet knew as early as last Sunday that Weizman had received a cordial letter from his Egyptian counterpart, War Minister Mohammed Gamassy, expressing a desire to explore the possibilities of renewing the peace talks and their personal contacts. Yesterday Weizman had a cable from Gamassy saying, “You are expected tomorrow, 30th March, at Cairo International Airport.”
The Defense Minister’s departure early this morning, was secret and no journalists were invited to accompany him. He left from an undisclosed airport–not a civilian airport, the official announcement said–aboard a twin-engined Westwind executive jet. He was met at Cairo Airport by Gamassy and both were taken by helicopter to a location near Cairo for the meeting with Sadat.
According to the official announcement here Weizman was accompanied by State Attorney Aharon Barak, his adjutant, Lt. Col. Ilan Tehila and his spokesman, David Kulitz. According to Cairo radio, Egyptian Vice President Hosni Mubarak also participated in the Sadat-Weizman meeting. Apart from the official radio announcement, news from the Egyptian capital was sparse because a water main break in Cairo knocked out underground cables and cut off communications.
POSITIVE VALUE OF VISIT
According to Cairo radio, Weizman promised Sadat that “the Israeli troops will not remain a single minute in Lebanon after the UN peacekeeping troops complete their deployment.” Israel’s incursion into Lebanon, however, is a side issue. The main stumbling blocks in the resumption of talks is Egypt’s insistence on an Israeli commitment, in the framework of a joint declaration of principles, to remove its settlements from Sinai and agree to self-determination for the Palestinians.
Sources here said that even if Weizman and Sadat failed to agree on means to resume direct talks, the Defense Minister at least renewed his personal contacts with the top Egyptian officials. Weizman is due to return to Israel tomorrow. Before he does so, there is a likelihood that he will have another meeting tonight and possibly tomorrow morning with Egyptian officials.
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