Syria may extend U.N. force mandate

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 34009, 25 November 1975, Page 19

Syria may extend U.N. force mandate

(N.ZP.A.-Reuter—Copyright) NEW YORK, November 24. Syria’s ruling National Progressive Front has agreed to renew the mandate of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force on the Golan Heights for another sixty days. “Newsweek” magazine reported.

I low ex er, the magazine said. President Assad of Syria “decided not to announce the decision until he completes a quick trip to the Soviet Union this week.”

“Moscow wants the United Nations mandate renewed, and before going along, Assad will try to extract more military aid from the Kremlin." it added. The United Nations Secretary-General (Dr[ Kurt Waldheim) is in Damascus seeking renewal of U.N.D.O.F.’s) six-month mandate, which expires in a week’s time. He travels to Israel today with Syria’s latest ideas for peace in the Middle East. In Damascus, Dr Waldheim) conferred for four hours with; President Assad, but he would not say afterwards whether Syria had agreed to renew the mandate. Informed sources said that this would depend on Syrian conditions, which Dr Waldheim would relay to the Tsraelies. Asked whether he would be carrying Syrian ideas on how to work for peace, Dr Waldheim replied: “Yes, very much so.” He told a press conference that he would return to Dasmascus on Wednesday night for a final talk with President Assad. During Dr Waldheim's Middle East tour, he will also meet Egyptian and Lebanese leaders, and he is due to see King Hussein of Jordan in London on Thursday. Peace efforts United Nations sources said that, besides seeking a renewal of U.N.D.0.F., Dr Waldheim’s tour was designed to find a way of restarting peace efforts outside the framework of the Geneva Conference. They said that Geneva was not feasible at this stage, because the General Assembly had voted that the Palestine Liberation Organisation must be involved in all peace efforts under United Nations! auspices — and Israel refused to recognise the P.L.O.

In Israel, it is felt that Syria will delay its assention until a day or so before the six-month mandate is due to be renewed.

Longer mandates A similar consensus at the! United Nations Headquarters In New York was reported yesterday by Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Genera] Haim Herzog, when he returned to Jerusalem for

, talks with Dr Waldheim. i Israeli officials have repeated their interest in [longer, more extensive mandates for the United Nations [force than the few months [agreed to by Damasus. 1 The Defence Minister (Mr [Shimon Peres) told Army offi[cer„ yesterday that Israel was [displeased by the “artificial [drama staged by the Syrians [every two months.”

In Washington on Saturday, the United States State Department confirmed that Iran recently gave “demontration flights” for Egyptian pilots in F 4 Phantom jets and Saudi Arabia sent F 5 jet fighters to join war games in Syria. U.S. arms sales Urging tighter Congressional control of United States arms sales, Senator Clifford (Republican, New Jersey), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the two incidents involving Americanbuilt fighters, “another warning sign that arms sold to the Persian Gulf nations, might eventually be utilised in a Middle East conflict.”

Syrian and Iranian activity with the planes has raised concern among friends of Israel in Congress, who fear that United States arms provided to Arab States and Iran might be used against the Israelis in any future Middle East conflict. Meanwhile, Mr Aharon Yariv, of the Israeli Parliament, met with key United States legislators to describe the threat perceived by Israel.

Mr Yariv was expected to stress that Israel considered Libya, in particular, to have become a weapons reservoir ifor the Arab world, because [of huge Libyan arms purchases from France and the Soviet Union. In an interview in Anwar, Jordan’s King Hussein said that United States military help to Israel had “tipped” any balance of arms away from the Arabs and might contribute to another Middle East war, the “United States News and World Report” magazine reported. Jordanian view King Hussein said that Jordan had reservations [about the interim agreement between Israel and Egypt [because:—

It renounced “the right to use force” in regaining Arab territory under Israeli control. “Any nation should have the right to exercise all

options to recover itsj territory.” There was no “connection"! between regaining Arab lands and recognising the homeland rights ofl Palestinian Arabs. United States arms were; going to Israel “on a scale that has never been matched before ... if a military balance existed in the past between the Arab states and Israel, it has been tipped in the favour of Israel in an unprecedented manner.’ - King Hussein said “the future looks bright” if there is progress on Israeli withdrawals from occupied territories. “But if there is no progress, and no prospect of progress, coupled with great military help to Israel beyond her needs for defence, then the dangers of another eruption are great,” he said. ! He noted that America had! approved the sale to Jordan of Hawk ground-air missiles, but if Israel acquired United States Pershing ground-to-ground missiles — with a [460-mile range — it would threaten peace not only in the Middle East, “but maybe in the whole world.”