Behind-scenes bid to settle planes’ wrangle

Press, 6 May 1978, Page 8

Behind-scenes bid to settle planes’ wrangle

NZPA-Reuter Washington Behind-the-scenes efforts were being made in Washington yesterday to reach a compromise on President Jimmy Carter’s proposed sale of warplanes to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Israel. But the United States President, speaking at a press conference in Portland, Oregon, again made it clear that he hoped Congress would allow the deal to go through unchanged. Carter Administration officials acknowledged publicly yesterday they were considering modifying the sales package although keeping the most controversial part — the sale of 60 highlysophisticated Flss to Saudi Arabia. Mr Carter also has linked this to the sale of 15 Flss and 75 Fl6s to Israel and 50 F5Es to Egypt.

Senator Frank Church , aj key member of the Foreign! Relations Committee, has! suggested increasing the number of jets sold to Israel, and a State Department spokesman said yesterday this was being considered.

In New York, the Israeli Prime Minister (Mr Menachem Begin) has called for resumption of negotiations between Egypt and Israel, but refused to budge from his hard-line stand on a Palestinian homeland.

In Tel Aviv, Radio Israel yesterday said that in an effort to restart its stalled talks with Egypt, Israel had suggested that the Egyptians might represent the Palestinians in Middle East peace negotiations. The radio said the Foreign Minister (Mr Moshe Dayan) had disclosed the suggestion when he briefed Foreign Ministry officials yesterday on his talks last week with the United States Secretary of State (Mr Cyrus Vance). Israel was waiting for Egypt’s reaction to the idea, Mr Dayan was quoted as saying. j In Lebanon, France rei placed the wounded com- ! mander of its United Nations forces in Lebanon yesterday as the French press called for them to be provided with heavier equipment and clearer orders. Lieutenant-Colonel Domi--1 nique Viard, aged 43, an Algerian war paratroop veteran, was named to replace Colonel Jean-Germain Salvan, seriously wounded in : southern Lebanon on Tuesi day in fighting in which two ; French soldiers and one Seinegalese were killed.