Andrew Young, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, said today that President Carter’s statements on the need for defensible borders for Israel and a homeland for the Palestinians were no accidents because the President knew what he was saying. He said he attended a meeting with Carter and the President’s National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski when it was agreed to use the phrase “defensible borders” instead of “security borders.”
Young’s remarks were made to some 150 persons at a meeting of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations which was closed to the press. His remarks were reported later by a spokesman for the Presidents Conference.
Stressing that he was not speaking for Carter but believed he was reflecting the President’s views. Young Said Carter realizes something has to be done to end the stalemate in the Middle East and make it possible for the Arabs and Israelis to begin bargaining. He said U.S. policy is not to impose a solution but to encourage flexibility in discussions.
Young said that Carter sees himself as strong and is willing to use some of his strength to bring about a movement toward peace in the Mideast. He said Carter sees himself as a “willing scapegoat” to that end. He noted that Carter is willing to take the “heat” for his statements and believes that they have given Premier Yitzhak Rabin more room to bargain within Israel for a settlement.
IMPRESSED WITH RABIN
The American envoy personally praised Rabin, according to the spokesman, and said he believes Rabin is a “winner,” adding that he is good at picking winners since he was an early supporter of Carter. He said he was impressed with Rabin during his recent visit to Washington and that despite Rabin’s narrow victory in the Labor Party convention he came to the U.S. not as “a supplicant,” but someone who knew what he wanted and was not hesitant to ask for it.
Young said that in a Middle East settlement. Israel is seeking security from outside forces while the Arabs are concerned with internal stability, an apparent reference to the poor economic conditions, especially of Egypt.
He stated that when he visited the Mideast in 1966 he found in Jordan a hatred among intellectuals that he had experience only by Ku Klux Klan types in the United States. “It brought terror to my heart.” Young said. He said this gave him an understanding of the need for military and economic aid to Israel to make it strong and secure enough to cope with the hatred of its enemies. He affirmed that no one can decide for Israel the terms on which it can live, especially people thousands of miles away.
U.S. POLICY UNCHANGED
Young stressed that Carter’s handshake with a Palestine Liberation Organization official during his recent UN visit did not mean any change in U.S. policy toward the PLO. He said for Carter to have denied the UN the right to invite anyone it wanted to the reception for him might have jeopardized the U.S. role as a peacemaker in the Mideast. But he claimed that neither he nor Carter knew they had shaken hands with the PLO representative until he asked UN Secretary General Kurt Waldheim about it later.
The U.S. envoy noted that at this week’s Security Council debate on the Mideast, the U.S. had again been the lone opponent to having the PLO participate in the meetings. He said the U.S. considered the resolution sponsored by Egypt as “inflammatory” but had not wanted to veto it on the eve of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s visit to Washington. He said the Council members agreed to end the discussion, adding the U.S. believes the Council cannot solve the Mideast conflict.
Young stressed to the gathering that the problems of Jews and Blacks are inseparable. He said the recent television program. “Roots.” had ignored the religious motivation and survival mechanisms of Black Americans which were essentially based on the Old Testament. Young, a Baptist, said Blacks took the Old Testament as “our book of reference” and that “common heritage” is the basis of both Black and Jewish survival and of “our ongoing working relationship.”
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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.
