Syria will stay out of Arab‐Israeli negotiations in Cairo even if they produce progress, and will boycott any subsequent Geneva peace talks, Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam of Syria said today.
He made the statement to reporters after talks between Syria’s President, Hafez al‐Assad, and the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al‐Nahiyan. No statement on their talks has been issued.
This is Mr. Assad’s last stop on a tour of oil‐producing states to enlist their opposition to peace invitiatives by Egypt toward Israel. There has been no indication that he has been successful.
The Cairo talks were called by President Anwar el‐Sadat of Egypt to prepare for a Geneva peace conference. The Cairo talks are scheduled to open Wednesday with Egyptian, Israeli, American and United Nations delegations present.
Mr Sadat has said that Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, the Soviet Union and the Palestinians, who have all refused to go, would be welcome to join the talks later.
“Syria will not attend the Cairo meeting even if it achieved some success,” Mr. Khaddam said. This is because they come as a result of Sadat’s visit to Israel.
“Syria believes any political activity, whether in Cairo or Geneva, would serve capitulatory schemes and be a coverup for plots. Syria refuses to participate in these plots at any stage,” he said.
Earlier, in an interview with a Kuwaiti newspaper, President Assad predicted that Syria would become “a target of vast pressures, including the dangers of an Israeli agression” aimed at softening its position. He said Syria would not yield.
