Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam of Syria said in Beirut, Lebanon, according to Reuters, that Syria would not negotiate for another Golan agreement with Israel.
American and Israeli officials in New York and Washington both said, however, they did not take Mr. Khaddam’s statement as the last word on the subject.
Mr. Khaddam is regarded by Washington as more uncompromising on dealing with Israel than President Hafez al‐Assad of Syria. Mr. Khaddam’s statements in the past, according to. State Department officials, have riot always reflected Mr. Assad’s views.
After the breakfast in Mr. Kissinger’s suite in the Waldorf Towers, the Secretary said:
“We discussed the state of diplomacy in the Middle East, the steps that can be taken toward progress toward peace in the Middle East and we had a general review of possibilities that are available and the approaches that are open.
“We agreed on the desirability of making progress toward peace in the. Middle Eeast, and now have to see what develops.”
The United States has been eager to give the impression of further progress in the aftermath of the recent Egyptian Israeli accord in Sinai.
In his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Monday. Mr. Kissinger pledged the United States to maintain diplomatic momentum. He suggested that an informal meeting might be held as a preliminary conference to discuss what the next steps should be in the Middle East.
Mr. Kissinger expects to meet Arab foreign ministers when he comes back to New York this weekend. Mr. Khaddam, the Syrian minister, was on the list, but he was quoted in Beirut as having said that he would not attend the General Assembly.
