British Foreign Secretary Selwyn LIoyd, discussing the proposed Big Power summit meeting on the Middle East, indicated in Commons today that the Israel-Arab conflict may come up for consideration by the leaders of the East and West blocs.
Mr. LIoyd told Parliament that although the discussions would basically concern them the selves with Lebanon and Jordan, they would also be involved with “long term objectives in the Middle East.” While he said that wider settlements could emerge, he thought it unwise to specify their “exact nature.”
The Foreign Secretary emphasized the “great advantages” of a summit meeting in the Security Council as proposed by the West. Among these advantages he listed keeping the matters of immediate concern-Lebanon and Jordan-within the framework of a UN settlement. He noted the UN’s already significant role in the area with regard to the Arab-Israeli armistice agreements, its functioning truce supervision organization and the UN Emergency Forces in Gaza and Lebanon.
INTERNATIONAL GUARANTEES OF ISRAEL-ARAB BORDERS URGED IN COMMONS
Aneuran Bevan, the Labor Party’s opposite number to Mr. LIoyd, called for international guarantees of the existing borders of Israel and the Arab states as a means of extending security in the area.
“In this new period, ” Mr. Bevan asserted, “nothing would give a greater sense of security than if it were found possible in a major settlement for the great powers to guarantee the frontiers of Israel and Israel’s neighbors, with such rectification of frontiers that may be mutually agreed. Israel has always been prepared to wipe out certain obvious faults in the drawing of the frontier line. “
He added that such guarantees would remove from the area one of the principal sources of contention and give moderate Arab leaders, “who believe Israel was there to stay, ” an opportunity to answer their followers and move in the direction of peace.
Conservative B. Nairn told Commons that the cause of Middle East unrest was the failure to solve the Arab-Israel dispute and that there could be no peace or stability in the region until a long-term solution of the problem is found. All of Britain’s influence must be concentrated on one objective–finding a solution of the problem which came into existence with the creation of Israel–he said.
Failure to solve the situation, he continued, could well change danger into disaster. He appealed for a special committee of small nations not involved in the Middle East to work out a fair and just solution.
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.
