Monday, Jun. 17, 1985

Middle East Hopeful U.S., Skeptical Israel

By William E. Smith

"Why cross an ocean when you can cross a river? Why should we sail to Washington when we can meet right away ten miles from here?" That was Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres' reaction last week to the latest developments in a Middle East peace initiative by Jordan's King Hussein that has found qualified acceptance in Washington. Not surprisingly, after years of Jordanian refusal to deal directly with Israel, Peres was skeptical, and so were many of his countrymen.

The maneuvering over the Jordanian proposal, following King Hussein's visit to Washington, coincided with the third anniversary of Israel's invasion of , Lebanon and, at least theoretically, with the end of that ill-fated adventure. The last Israeli units were expected to be withdrawn by the end of last week, although Jerusalem left around 100 soldiers in a "security zone" north of the Israel-Lebanon frontier. That prompted an outcry from Lebanese Shi'ites, who threaten continued warfare until the last Israeli soldier leaves Lebanon.

Further tension arose in the area late last week as an Israeli-backed, predominantly Christian militia known as the South Lebanon Army kidnaped 25 Finnish soldiers of the U.N. peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. According to an Israeli communique quoting the S.L.A., the action came in response to the earlier capture of eleven S.L.A. members by the Finnish soldiers. The communique went on to say that the U.N. troops had taken the S.L.A. men away in vehicles belonging to the Shi'ite Amal militia.

Another version of events came from Amal, which claimed it had abducted the eleven militiamen in an attack on an S.L.A. outpost. Whatever version was correct, at week's end, at least three of the Finns had been released, according to a U.N. spokesman.

The week had begun on a hopeful note with a letter on wider Middle East peace prospects from U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz to Prime Minister Peres. Shultz told Peres that the U.S. had been impressed by Hussein's statement that he had won the backing of the Palestine Liberation Organization for direct talks with Israel. Those negotiations would be based on U.N. Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, the King had told the U.S., thereby assuring P.L.O. recognition of Israel's right to exist and Arab acceptance of the principle of exchanging territory for peace.

Since the U.S. now believes Jordan is committed to talk directly with Israel, Shultz continued, he hoped Israel would back U.S. efforts to move in that direction. One aim is an exploratory meeting between a U.S. delegation and a joint group of Jordanians and Palestinians who are not members of the P.L.O. Shultz also listed points on which the U.S. disagrees with Hussein. Washington does not believe, for example, that the negotiations should take place at an international conference, because it does not want to see the Soviet Union involved in Middle East settlement efforts. The U.S., moreover, insists that it will deal directly with the P.L.O. only if the organization makes a forthright public statement of its support for relevant U.N. resolutions and of its recognition of Israel.

The general reaction in Israel was one of skepticism. Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin, visiting in New York City, emphasized to TIME editors that Israel insists on nothing less than direct negotiations with Jordan without prior conditions, and is not convinced that Hussein will accept such a process. But, Rabin continued, if the King wanted to assemble a Jordanian- Palestinian delegation for direct talks, "it's fine with us." Rabin said he personally favored an Arab delegation that included representatives from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip because it is those territories that would be directly affected. Israel's only stipulation: that the Palestinian delegates not be members of the P.L.O. Rabin sounded somewhat optimistic about settlement prospects when, after assessing the changed state of the Muslim world and the reduced strength of the P.L.O., he concluded, "If there is a time when it can be done, it is now." He added, however, "I hope that the present excitement that exists in certain circles in Washington will not prove to have no basis."

One potential stumbling block lies in the concept of Palestinian "self- determination," a term generally understood to mean the establishment of an independent Palestinian entity in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Israel adamantly opposes such a move. Jordan's Foreign Minister Taher al Masri argued in Washington last week, however, that the Jordanian-Palestinian "confederation" that Hussein and Arafat have in mind "means that there will be no independent Palestinian state."

With the King committed to discussions with Israel, the Administration moved last week to give him some concrete support. After four years of delay, the State Department submitted for the President's approval a proposal to supply Jordan with $250 million to $300 million in economic aid. Although details of the package remain to be defined, the Administration also would like to supply Hussein with advanced Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, improved Hawk mobile antiaircraft missiles and Stinger hand-held ground-to-air missiles.

Aware of Israel's opposition to the Jordanian request, Republican Senator John Heinz of Pennsylvania and Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts garnered the support of 67 other Senators last week for a nonbinding resolution to ban sales of advanced arms to Jordan as long as it "continues to oppose the Camp David peace process and purchases arms from the Soviet Union." That move, declared a frustrated Shultz, was an attempt "to stick the Congress's finger in King Hussein's eye." The Administration argued that now more than ever, as he pushes for peace, the King needs the weapons to defend himself against his enemies -- notably Syria, which fervently opposes an Arab-Israeli rapprochement. The Heinz-Kennedy resolution may come to nothing, but the support it found was an indication of the obstacles an arms request for Jordan will face on Capitol Hill.

With reporting by Dean Fischer/Amman and Johanna McGeary/Washington