127. Telegram From Secretary of State Vance to the Department of State1
Secto 10054. For Tarnoff. Subject: Presidential Message to Begin.
1. Please clear following message with White House and, upon clearance, dispatch to Tel Aviv.
2. Begin message:
[Page 687]Subject: Presidential Message to Prime Minister Begin. Action: Tel Aviv Immediate. For the Ambassador.
1. Please convey to Prime Minister as soon as possible the following message from the President to Prime Minister Begin.
2. Begin message:
Dear Mr. Prime Minister:
I have been greatly relieved to learn that your indisposition has not been serious and that you are getting along well. You have my very best wishes for an early return to your normal activities.
We have had excellent discussions with Foreign Minister Dayan.2 Through those talks we have developed a suggested procedure for the Geneva Conference that I believe provides a fair basis for moving ahead. It will not satisfy all the desires of any of the parties, but it strikes a balance that gives no party special advantage. We are discussing the matter in general terms with the Arabs and will seek their specific agreement when we have your response.
As Foreign Minister Dayan will have reported to you, this procedure would provide for the Arab parties to be represented at Geneva by a unified delegation that includes Palestinians. After the opening sessions of the conference, working groups would be formed to negotiate peace treaties between Israel and Egypt, Israel and Syria, and Israel and Jordan. If Lebanon joins the Conference, an Israel-Lebanon group would also be formed.
The issues of the West Bank and Gaza would be discussed in a working group consisting of Israel, Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinians. The question of refugees would be discussed in accordance with terms to be agreed upon. The suggested procedure also provides that the agreed basis for the negotiations at the Geneva Peace Conference on the Middle East is UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 and that all the initial terms of reference of the Geneva Peace Conference remain in force, except as agreed by the parties.
I am sure you agree with me that it is extremely important, after the lengthy period all of us have spent on procedural issues, that we be able to turn to the substantive problems. Procedure should not become an end in itself. The problems that all of us are committed to trying to solve are those of substance, that can be dealt with best at Geneva. I very much hope that we will be able to reach agreement among the parties to the suggested procedure that we have worked out with Foreign Minister Dayan. At the same time I am asking all concerned to keep an open mind about the possibility that further refinements may be needed before full agreement can be achieved.
[Page 688]I want to assure you, as I have assured Foreign Minister Dayan, that the United States remains steadfast in its commitment to Israel’s security. We intend to continue our intensive effort to help the parties achieve a peace settlement on the basis of Resolutions 242 and 338, which I believe will provide the surest long-run security for Israel.
Sincerely, Jimmy Carter
End message.
3. Drafted by: NEA: ARDay. Clearances: NEA—Mr. Atherton P—Mr. Habib, White House—Approved: the Secretary.
End message.
- Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, P840072–1997. Secret; Immediate; Nodis.↩
- See Documents 118 and 124.↩