Syrian Foreign Minister Abdul Halim Khaddam today indirectly indicated that he and President Carter disagreed on who should represent the Palestinians at a reconvened Geneva conference for a Middle East settlement.
Khaddam’s indication came when he evaded a reporter’s direct question on whether he and Carter were “in agreement on the sort of Palestinians who should be at Geneva.” Responding to the question, Khaddam said, “We expressed our own point of view, namely that the PLO must represent the Palestinians.”
Khaddam was at the White House for about two hours, meeting with Carter and his top aides. Later this afternoon, the President met with Jordan’s Foreign Minister and Chief of the Royal Court, Hassen Ibrahaim and Sharif Sharaf, respectively.
Khaddam, who met reporters upon emerging from the White House, spoke in Arabic in response to questions. He refused to give the President’s reaction to the Syrian position on the PLO saying “it is not in my job description to speak for the President.” Asked what the PLO has done so far to try to bring about a general peace, Khaddam said that “the PLO is ready to go and attend the Geneva conference on the basis of the ethical and equitable things that will go into the conference.”
Asked whether he was satisfied with the American position towards the PLO, Khaddam said again in an evasive reply, “I have said that I am very satisfied with the noble effort expended by the President of the United States towards peace.”
ISRAEL CITED AS PRIMARY OBSTACLE
On a question as to what “the primary obstacle” is to a conference at this point, Khaddam blamed “Israeli rejection,” and , at least insofar as could be gotten in the Arab interpreter’s words, Khaddam said that Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan said the Israelis “would never withdraw from the 1967 boundaries nor would we recognize anything known as the Palestinian people.”
Khaddam insisted the PLO alone represented the Palestinians, saying, “We have underscored the fact, our own opinion, that there is no Palestinian who can claim to represent the Palestinians outside the PLO.”