Begin agrees to Carter plan to speed up talks on M.E.

Press, 16 April 1980, Page 8

Begin agrees to Carter plan to speed up talks on M.E.

NZPA-Reuter Washington The Israeli Prime Minister (Mr Menachem Begin) will peet President Carter again today, after agreeing to a United States proposal to Speed up the negotiations tvith Egypt on Palestinian Self-rule. Mr Begin arrived from Israel yesterday, a week fefter President Carter held Separate talks on the issue tvith the Egyptian President |Mr*Anwar Sadat). Tne Prime Minister said »n arrival that Israel would flo its .best to speed up the talks and bring about an Autonomy accord by the May

a 126 target set by Israel and Egypt r .But he left it unclear 1 whether Israel was prepared 1 to make concessions on any a of the substantive issues. ’ Mr Begin said Israel would s not interfere in the daily 1 affairs of the Palestinians on the Jordan West Bank and in ’ Gaza, but would assure its I own security. 3 The main obstacle in the t talks has been a dispute over what constitutes Israel’s leI gitimate security needs. 1 Mr Sadat last week asked > President Carter to seek i Israeli agreement to isolate r the security issue in a sepa-

l rate negotiating committee lon the ground that it was ' complicating every other question. Mr Begin also said that full (autonomy for Palestinians, a goal to which Israel and Egypt pledged themselves at Camp David 18 months ago, would be expressed through the election of an administrative council. Egypt’s contention is that, the powers of the council are what will determine full autonomy, not its mere election. Egypt wants it to have legislative powers, whereas Israel refuses, out of fear this might lead to creation of a Palestinian State. I

I Mr Sadat agreed last week, [to hold intensified, non-stop Ministerial talks in Washington beginning in the week of April 28. Mr Begin indicated yesterday that he accepted the date, but not necessarily the site when he said the venue would have to be clarified during the White House talks. Israeli Cabinet members have objected to the absence of leading Ministers from Israel for up *o six weeks, and instead were said to favour alternating the talks among Washington, Jerusalem, and Cairo.