United Nations Secretary General Kurt Waldheim’s trip to the Middle East in search of a solution to the Arab Israeli conflict was not initiated or inspired by the United States, State Department sources informed the Jewish Telegraphic Agency today. They said that the trip “is probably his (Waldheim’s) own idea.”
Meanwhile, in response to questions, State Department, spokesman Paul Hare reiterated the Department’s position that it supports the Waldheim trip. He would not comment further on this development. Neither would he discuss the present status of the U.S. initiated suggestion for an interim Israel Egyptian agreement that would lead to the reopening of the would lead to the reopening of the Suez Canal.
In reply to a question. Hare said he would not comment beyond the denial by the spokesman for the U.S. Mission to the UN that the U.S. was trying to delay the start of the Security Council debate on the Middle East. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat accused the U.S. of trying to have the debate postponed in favor of an American proposal for negotiations between Israel and Egypt on reopening the Suez Canal.
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.