Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan of Israel conferred here this morning for 50 minutes with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican. After the meeting, the Vatican issued a written communique expressing its wishes for “a rapid reconciliation of all the peoples in the Middle East” and its own readiness to help in reaching peace.
The Israeli minister drove into the Vatican through its main gate at a few minutes before II a.m. There were no Israeli or Vatican flags flying on his car–apparently because of the lack of diplomatic relations between Israel and the Holy See. The deputy head of the Pope’s household Msgr. Dino Manducci waited in the central courtyard “San Domaso” to escort him to the second floor where the audience took place in the Pope’s private library.
Two high ranking Catholic prelates, Msgr. Agostino Casaroli, the Vatican’s “Foreign Minister” and Msgr. Francesco Monterisi, who deals with the Middle East in the Vatican’s State Secretariate, attended the meeting. The Israeli party included the Israeli Ambassador in Rome, Zeev Shek, and Dayan’s advisor, Naphtali Lavi.
Dayan is the first high-level Israeli to meet the Pope since Golda Meir’s visit in January, 1973 when she was Israel’s Premier. Today’s audience was marked by the lack of tension and strain which characterized the 1973 meeting.
NO CONCRETE SUGGESTIONS ON JERUSALEM
In his address to Dayan, the Pope did not mention the Palestinian problem and made no concrete suggestions on Jerusalem besides expressing “the fervent hope for a solution that will not only satisfy the legitimate aspirations of those concerned, but also take into account the pre-eminently religious character of the Holy City.”
The Pope, in a written address which he read to Dayan in English, added: “We, therefore, trust that the proposal several times put forward by the Holy See, in view of the spiritual greatness of Jerusalem, will be seen as a positive contribution to such a solution.”
Vatican sources say the “proposal” means the adoption of a special status for Jerusalem with international guarantees. The Vatican has never spelled out what this special status should mean. It is generally believed the Vatican would want recognition of special rights for the Catholic church, freedom of access to the holy places and a certain degree of autonomy for the administration of Catholic institutions there.
Israeli sources said after the meeting that Dayan informed the Pope on recent developments in the Middle East as a result of the new peace process. Dayan, the sources said, also told the Pope that Israel has and will continue to scrupulously respect religious freedom, especially with regard to the holy places. Establishing diplomatic relations between Israel and the Holy See was not discussed, the Israeli sources said.
FORMULA ON THE PALESTINIAN ISSUE
Dayan, addressing a press conference this evening at the conclusion of his four-day official visit, said the Pope and he did not negotiate the future of Jerusalem or the holy places. He said the Pope did not mention a special status for Jerusalem during their talk.
Dayan said he had discussed the Palestinian issue with the Pope. He said he told him that a just solution to this issue should be based on United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. The solution should be negotiated by the countries concerned–Egypt, Israel, Jordan–and include the Palestinians living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. “I think this formula has been accepted by the Pope,” Dayan said.
The Israeli Foreign Minister said that during their discussion, the Pope showed interest “in the holy places in Jerusalem but not in the entire city of Jerusalem” as such. He said that Israel fully agrees and will continue to grant freedom of access to all those who want to visit the holy places as well as freedom of worship.
Replying to a question, Dayan said he felt convinced Israel will not negotiate in the future the fate of Jerusalem as such. As to the holy places, he said that these will be respected by Israel “even if the Jews had used the sites 2000 years earlier as a holy site of their own. I think it would be wrong for us to use our soldiers in order to impose our will in this field.”
TWO TOP CP MEMBERS ATTEND RECEPTION
On Tuesday night, Dayan hosted a large reception given in honor of Italian Foreign Minister Arnaldo Farlani. Among those who attended were two prominent members of the Italian Communist Party, Segre and Andre Payeta, both members of the central committee and filling important executive posts. It was the first time Communist leaders attended an Israeli-hosted reception since the Communist bloc led by the Soviet Union broke off diplomatic relations with Israel in June 1967.
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.
