U.S. Takes Action On M.E. Talks

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31907, 7 February 1969, Page 11

U.S. Takes Action On M.E. Talks

CV.Z.P.A.-Reuter— Copyright l WASHINGTON, February 6. The United States has called for contacts between the Big Four Powers to prepare for a full-scale conference on the Middle East. Official sources said yesterday the United States accepted a French proposal for a Big Four meeting in principle, but wanted preliminary bilateral contacts to ensure its success.

Washington’s agreement to work towards a conference was made known in a Note handed to the French Ambassador (Mr Charles Lucet) by Mr William Rogers, the Secretary of State.

France suggested the Big Four meeting in Notes to the United States, Russia and Britain 20 days ago, and said the proposed conference between the countries’ representatives to the United

Nations should be geared to help achieve a just and lasting peace. The Nixon Administration was reported ready to go forward with the plan, provided Big Four diplomats first conferred privately to lay the groundwork for a fruitful and constructive meeting. United Press International reported that in Paris, Gaullist quarters welcomed Washington’s acceptance of the Middle East talks proposal as “an appropriate curtainraiser” on President Nixon’s meeting with President Charles de Gaulle.

Although the Government did not issue any statement, Gaullist sources said last night the Government was “very pleased” by the move.

The British were known to have approved orally the French proposal for a meeting of United Nations Ambassadors from the United States, the Soviet Union, Britain and France.

Washington’s ’ proposal marked the first time the four nations seemed agreed on some kind of co-operation in a joint action to restore peace in the troubled area. In the United Nations, the United Arab Republic yesterday protested to the Secre-tary-General (U Thant) at alleged mistreatment of Arabs in the occupied Gaza Strip and accused Israel of firing on a demonstration there last week, wounding or killing more than 100 schoolgirls. The U.A.R. Foreign Minister (Mr Mahmoud Riad) told the Secretary-General in a letter that the “Gaza sector and all its towns have in the past weeks been turned into a battlefield in whieh a considerable number of unarmed civilians were killed and wounded as a result of brutal acts of repression carried out by the Israeli military occupation authorities.” A statement issued here by the Israeli mission to the United Nations denied that Israeli forces had fired on civilians in Gaza and blamed “terrorist organisations (which) do not shrink from exploiting women and children in furtherance of their obiectives.” Israel said it would shortly submit a formal letter to U Thant in answer to the U.A.R. accusations.