784A.02/4–450: Telegram
The Ambassador in Egypt (Caffery) to the Secretary of State
332. Deptel 276, April 3.1 Text of Arab League resolution re negotiations with Israel which was sent Department in substance in mytel 305, March 292 and in full in despatch 635, March 313 is as follows:
“Seeing the vital importance of the Palestine question for all states of the Arab League, seeing that these states have dealt with this question in unison, seeing the common danger incurred by states of the League and by Palestine from the viewpoint of their common defense, the Council of the League unanimously decided the following:
- “(1) It is forbidden for an Arab state belonging to the League to negotiate or conclude a separate peace or a political, military, or economic accord with Israel. The state which contravenes this principle will be considered as excluded from the League ipso facto, in conformity with Article 18 of the Charter of the League.
- “(2) The Political Commission is charged with carrying out the necessary dispositions toward the state which renders itself guilty of such offense”.
As indicated in mytels 322, April 24 and 327, April 3,3 approval of resolution by all Arab states including Iraq and Jordan places League [Page 840] definitely on record against peace negotiations at a time when leaders of Arab states except Saudi Arabia (mytel 313, March 31)5 admit privately that an arrangement must eventually be made with Israel. Resolution therefore represents setback to any immediate approach to Israel but need not completely bar eventual action.
Future action by Abdullah can best be ascertained elsewhere, but it seems plausible Abdullah, notwithstanding his approval of resolution, will pause only to find opportune time to renew negotiations with Israel on whom it is possible he may raise his demands as compensation for his break with League. Abdullah may also be motivated by whether he wants to remain in League and his estimate of effectiveness of Arab economic boycott. In meantime as suggested in mytel 327, Arab leaders here are saying “where do we go from here”.
Sent Department, Department pass Amman 22, Tel Aviv 49, pouched Arab capitals.
- Not printed; it instructed Cairo to send to the Department the text of the Arab League resolution regarding Arab negotiations with Israel and the Embassy’s appraisal of the importance and effect of the resolution (784A.02/4–350).↩
- Not printed; it advised that the prevailing attitude at the meeting of League toward Jordan had softened. The “Trend now away from expulsion and toward using Israel–Jordan negotiations to demonstrate official Arab opposition to relations with Israel by adoption formula that any Arab state concluding separate arrangements with Israel without League approval would be considered as being automatically out of League and subject to economic boycott by Arabs.” (786.00/3–2950)↩
- Not printed.↩
- Not printed; it reported that the Arab League Council on the evening of April 1 unanimously approved the resolution (786.00/4–250).↩
- Not printed.↩
- Not printed; it conveyed the views of Amir Faisal, Saudi Arabian Minister for Foreign Affairs, that “stability would never come to the ME as long as Israel remained. Arabs had no intention of renewing war. They could not, in fact, but it would remain to his children and to their children to see that this menace was eliminated from the ME.” (786.00/3–3150)↩