Cabinet Approves Dayan’s U.S. Visit; Will Meet with Rogers, Laird, Kissinger

The Cabinet today officially approved Defense Minister Moshe Dayan’s visit to the United States next month and confirmed that he would meet with Nixon Administration officials in Washington. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency learned today that a meeting with President Nixon is not excluded but has been left open for the time being. The JTA learned from reliable sources that meetings have already been scheduled for Gen. Dayan with Defense Secretary Melvin Laird. Secretary of State William P. Rogers, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joseph J. Sisco and Dr. Henry Kissinger, President Nixon’s chief advisor on national security affairs. The statement issued after today’s cabinet meeting mentioned “Administration personalities” but gave no details. It said that Gen. Dayan’s trip was on behalf of the United Jewish Appeal and that Premier Golda Meir would be acting Defense Minister in his absence. Under Israeli law, every government minister’s trip abroad is subject to cabinet approval. The cabinet’s communique stated that Foreign Minister Abba Eban reviewed political affairs, Chief of Staff Haim Bar Lev briefed the ministers on the security situation and U.S. -Israeli relations were discussed by Ambassador Yitzhak Rabin who was recalled from Washington for consultations last week.

The reports of Gen. Dayan’s forthcoming high level meetings in Washington indicated a change of mind by the Government on his activities while in the U.S.. Previous rumors that he would hold high level talks in Washington had been denied by Foreign Ministry spokesmen. Premier Golda Meir, however, told a meeting of Israeli editors on Friday that she thought it would be very desirable for the Defense Minister to meet with American Administration officials though she did not say which ones or when such meetings would take place. Gen. Dayan said on a television interview Thursday night that he would visit Washington only if Mrs. Meir asked him to. Mr. Eban has reportedly dropped his objections to political meetings by Gen. Dayan in the U.S., provided that the Defense Minister sticks to terms of reference drafted by the government here. Israel’s Ambassador to Washington. Ambassador Rabin, was said to be of the same opinion. He and Mr. Eban reportedly have expressed the view that no harm would be done if Gen. Dayan raised the matter of re-negotiating the Suez cease-fire while he is in Washington though neither believed that the proposal would be acceptable to the U.S. Gen. Dayan has suggested on several occasions that the cease-fire be re-negotiated on the basis of a mutual partial disengagement of Israeli and Egyptian forces along the Suez Canal. He has also been a strong advocate of Israel’s return to the Jarring peace talks whether or not its demands for an Egyptian missile pull-back are met.

In her talk to the editors, Mrs. Meir denied knowledge of any “Dayan plan” and said that Gen. Dayan himself had dissociated himself from press reports of such a plan. She repeated the denial at subsequent meetings of the Labor Party leadership. But Mrs. Meir told a group of women members of the Party on Thursday that “it is almost certain we shall not be able to get all the conditions we demanded for the resumption of the Jarring talks.” She told the editors that “Israel cannot return to the Jarring talks without clearing up three or four things” which she described as “essential.” She did not elaborate but observed that “conditions” were necessary to avoid placing Israel in a position of inferiority at the forthcoming peace talks. The Cabinet today adopted a resolution expressing good wishes to President Zalman Shazar on his 81st birthday. The Ministry of Education and Culture announced a $1,430 prize for the best original Hebrew play in honor of the President’s birthday. In another area, the Cabinet ratified a treaty with Britain that will allow certain court rulings there to be enforceable in Israel and vice versa. The treaty, signed yesterday in London, relates to judgements for debts, damages or other financial awards.