A very authoritative source in the Foreign Ministry said tonight that Israel was considering the curtailment of its policy of “quiet diplomacy” in the Middle East negotiations. “Everybody talks,” he complained. “Everybody shows everybody else the contents of the notes exchanged between Israel and Egypt.” The source complained further that Israel’s Feb. 21 response to Egypt’s Feb. 15 note was by no means as negative as some countries have charged. In that response Israel ruled out total withdrawal from the occupied Arab territories. If that is the point over which there have been objections, the Foreign Ministry source said, it should be recalled that even the United States, in the Dec. 9, 1969, Rogers plan, declared that border changes must be minor. The source also asked why Egypt’s statement–agreeing to a peace pact with Israel in return for total withdrawal–should be considered positive.
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.
