A debate on the action of Secretary-General U Thant in withdrawing the United Nations Emergency Force from the Israeli-Egyptian border highlighted deliberations here yesterday of the private Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth) conference.
The conference was convened by the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions of Santa Barbara, California, to seek new approaches to peace. It was boycotted by the Soviet Union. The principal debaters on the issue of the UNEF withdrawal were Rabbi Robert Gordis of New York, a professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and Arthur S. Lall, former Indian delegate to the U.N. who is now professor of international relations at Columbia University.
Rabbi Gordis called Mr. Thant’s compliance with Egyptian President Nasser’s demand for the UNEF withdrawal a “capitulation” to Nasser. He said it was a “tragic irony” that the current Middle East crisis should be the “fault” of the U.N. secretariat rather than of the powers directly concerned. Mr. Lall rejected the contention that Mr. Thant could have acted otherwise, Mr. Lall served on the advisory committee which aided the late Dag Hammarskjold, then Secretary-General, in negotiating the UNEF agreement with Egypt in 1957.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
