Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 38, No. 31, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 2, 1984 Page: 2 of 24
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TEXAS JEWISH POST THURSDAY, AUGUST 2, 1984 PAGE 2
Syria's 'Helpful' Position In Lebanon Is Under Attack
■
TJPost Washington
Bureau
Both In And Out Of Congress
WASHINGTON - Heavy
fire is being directed both in
and outside of Congress at
the State Department for its
position that Syria is being
“helpful” in the efforts in
Lebanon to bring about
termination of the civil
warfare that has raged with
varying intensity there for
nine years.
on Israeli-Arab affairs that
“we believe that Syria has
been one of the helpful
players” in “progress to-
ward restoring stability and
security” in Lebanon.
Former Under Secretary
of State Joseph Sisco and
Kenneth Bialkin, chairman
of the Conference of Presi-
dents of Major American
Jewish Organizations, were
among critics of the Depart-
ment’s view in addition to
members of the House
Foreign Affairs Subcom-
mittee which had received
the official praise for Syria
from Richard Murphy, the
assistant secretary of state
for Middle East affairs.
“The statement is ludi-
cruous,” said a Capitol
source close to Middle East
affairs. “Syria has brought
stability to Lebanon like the
Soviets did to Hungary after
the uprising in 1956, like it
did to Afghanistan in 1979,
and like Marshall Jaruzelski
did for Poland in crushing
the Solidarity Movement.”
Murphy, a former ambas-
sador to Syria, told the
subcommittee the day after
Israel’s election and follow-
ing weeks of virtually utter
reticence at the Department
rorism, had sabotaged the
U.S.-sponsored Israel-Leba-
non troop withdrawal agree-
ment,” has publicly chal-
lenged our country and
demonstrated its contempt
for, and hostility to, our
purposes.”
Bialkin telegraphed Secre-
tary of State George Schultz
that the U.S. praise of Syria
was “an astonishing and
depressing development.”
He said it should not be
complimented for having
turned Lebanon into “a
puppet state." If the Reagan
Administration is conceding
Syrian domination of Leban-
on, Bialkin said, “it is indeed
a sad day for America’s role
in the Middle East.” Noting
the Department’s position is
“astonishing,” Bialkin said
the “despotic Syrian re-
gime” was supporting ter-
Meeting with correspon-
dents to assess the Israeli
election, Sisco said that “the
way” the assistant secre-
tary put his statement was
“unfortunate.” Saying he did
not “believe that we have
seen a Syria in recent weeks
that has been ‘helpful,’ ”
Sisco added “I believe that
the actions that have been
taken by the Syrian Govern-
ment” were “not on any
particular desire of the
Syrians to be ‘helpful’ but
rather based on the Syrian
national interest that it
needs a period of relative
quiet in Lebanon.
to it that Lebanon, in the
short run, remains quiet,”
Sisco said. “In the long run,”
over the next one to five
years, Sisco added “if there
is to be stability and peace in
the Middle East, there has
to be a fundamental reckon-
ing between Israel on the
one hand and Syria on the
other.”
statement both “inappropri-
ate” and “unfortunate.”
“To the extent to which
the Syrians have been
involved in bringing about
this uneasy understanding
between the various factions
in Lebanon, it has been out
of Syrian national interests
and out of the desire to see
Indignation and astonish-
ment greeted Murphy’s
statement to the Congress-
men. Asked by them how he
could support his “helpful”
statement after the U.S.
denunciations of Syria over
the past year, Murphy
replied “times change,” a
phrase the State Depart-
ment repeated later in
response to reporters’ ques-
tions. Rep. Edwin Zschau
(R-Calif), a staunch support-
er of administration policy,
expressed surprise and Rep.
Lawrence Smith (D.-Fla. a
friend of Israel, sharply
questioned Murphy’s com-
ment. Recalling the slaught-
er of 241 U.S. servicemen by
a terrorist bombing at the
Marine barracks in Beirut,
Rep. Robert Toricelli (D-NJ)
found Syria’s “helpfulness”
n
Murphy said Syria show-
ed “active willingness to
move in restoring stability
in Lebanon” after Damas-
cus had forced abrogation of
the Israeli-Lebanese agree-
ment of May 17,1983, which
the U.S. had sponsored.
Murphy also told the sub-
committee that “conditions
could come about” that
would cause Syria to with-
draw its forces from Leban-
on, perhaps as early as 24 to
48 hours after total Israeli
withdrawal. Shultz had re-
portedly received such an
impression after his visit to
Damascus 18 months ago
and then felt double-crossed
when he fostered the May 17
pact and Syria made no
move to help implement it.
the closing was “regret-
table” because it served as a
“useful mechansm” for Is-
raeli-Lebanese contacts.
In supporting Murphy’s
position, the Department
said Syria “in recent weeks
has begun to play a more
helpful role in the security
situation in the Beirut area
and assisting the process of
reconciliation in contrast to
its action in the past.” It
described “notable improve-
ment” in Beirut security
situation, functioning of the
airport and the seaport and
increase in the crossings
between East and West
Beirut.
1
I
The Department’s posi-
tions were in sharp contrast
Murphy’s appearance
came two days after Israel
had to close its liaison office
east of Beirut on Lebanese
orders acting under Syrian
pressure. The office, an
outgrowth of the May 17
pact, ended Lebanese-Israeli
official communication. Mur-
phy and the department said
to President Reagan’s state
ment on Feb. 3 that “Syria is
trying to lead a radical effort
to dominate the region
through terrorism and in-
timidation, aimed, in partic-
ular, at America’s friends.”
There has been no sign since
then of an abatement of
Soviet support for Syria,
either in the supply of
weaponry or stationing of
military advisors, calculated
here at about 5,000.
L
New French P.M. Is Son Of Jewish Family That Converted
But His Wife And Children Are Considered Jewish
New French Government Expected ||
To Adopt Stronger Pro-Israel Stance
BY EDWIN EYTAN
PARIS [JTA] - Lau-
rent Fabius, the new
Prime Minister of
France, is the son of an
old French-Jewish family
that converted to Ca-
tholicism after World
War H. His wife, the
former Francoise Castro,
is Jewish and Jewish
community sources said
that their children “are
Jewish according to any
halachic interpretation.”
Fabius, who was Minis-
ter of Industry in the
Cabinet of Premier Pier-
re Mauroy, was named
Prime Minister by Presi-
dent Francois Mitterrand
following Mauroy’s resig-
nation. At 37, he is the
youngest French Prime
Minister in over a cen-
tury.
Fabius has never
shown interes in Ju-
daism. But he told a
French-Jewish weekly
recently, “I am a friend of
Israel and I think every-
thing should be done to
enable Israel to live as an
independent state and in
peace.” He also pledged
to do “everything I can”
to strengthen Franco-Is-
raeli cooperation in sci-
ence.
Visited Israel On
Several Occasions
He has visited Israel
on several occasions,
both privately and as a
government minister. In
the latter capacity this
year, he conferred with
Israel's Minister of Sci-
ence, Yuval Neeman, on
the possibility of joint
ventures in the scientific
field. Israeli diplomats
here said Fabius showed
good will throughout
those negotiations and
personally urged his ad-
visors to reach an agree-
ment with Israel on
scientific cooperation.
On his private trips to
Israel, Fabius spent time
at a kibbutz. His pro Isra-
el sentiments are not
likely to effect any
changes in French Middle
East policy. Under the
French Constitution, for-
Prime Minister Fabius
eign policy is the exclu-
sive preserve of the
President. Official
sources here said that
French policy in the
Middle East will continue
to follow the main lines
laid down by President
Mitterrand.
PARIS [JTA] - The
Socialist government of Pre-
mier Laurent Fabius, no
longer tethered to the Com-
munist Party which was
part of the coalition head-
ed by former Premier Pierre
Mauroy, is expected to
adopt a stronger pro-Israel
stance than its predecessor,
diplomatic observers said
here.
Although foreign policy is
the exclusive province of the
President under the French
Constitution, President
Francois Mitterrand had
been forced to take Com-
munist opinion into con-
sideration when he formulat-
ed it in the past.
“Now, with the Com-
munist gone, the Presi-
dent will have an even freer
hand in pursuing a strong
pro-Western Atlantic line in
Europe and the Middle
East,” the observers said.
Mitterrand named Fabius to
succeed Mauroy after the
latter’s sudden resignation
this week and the Cabinet
has been reshuffled.
Among the four Commu-
nist ministers dropped was
Charles Fitterman, Minis-
ter of Transport, who was
born in Lille, the son of
Jewish immigrant parents
from Poland. He is slated to
replace Georges Marchais as
Secretary General of
France’s Communist Party.
Fabius has reappointed
another Jew who held a
senior Cabinet post in the
French P.M. Described
As A Friend Of Israel
BY GIL SEDAN
JERUSALEM [JTA] -
Laurent Fabius, the newly
designated Prime Minister
of France, was described by
Israel’s Ambassador in Paris
as “a friend of Israel who has
deep feelings and convic-
tions toward the Zionist
enterprise.”
Ambassador Ovadia Sofer
said in a Voice of Israel
Radio interview from the
French capital that Fabius,
Minister of Industry in the
outgoing government of
Premier Pierre Mauroy, was
one of the more talented
members of the Socialist
government.
When he visited Israel
four months ago “he broke
the ice” that had chilled
relations between the two
countrieis with the result
that France and Israel
concluded a pact for coopera-
tion in the high technology
field.
See Fabius Page 18
Mauroy government, Jus-
tice Minister Robert Badin-
ter. Gaston DeFerre, a
non-Jew but a warm friend
of Israel, lost his port-
folio of Minister of Inter-
ior but remains a Minister of
State and is the highest
ranking Cabinet member
after the Prime Minister.
Minister of Culture Jack
Lang, who is Jewish, is
expected to keep his post
which is classified as a junior
ministry.
Fabius himself is of
Jewish origin. His father,
who runs one of Paris’ most
fashionable art and antiques HHj
gallery, converted to Cathol- E^g
icism before the 37-year-old ™
Premier-to-be was born. But
Jewish sources here stress-
ed that his mother never
converted and according to
halachic interpretation, Fa-
bius is and remains a Jew.
His wife is Jewish and his
children are considered Jew-
ish according to Jewish law.
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Wisch, J. A. & Wisch, Rene. Texas Jewish Post (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 38, No. 31, Ed. 1 Thursday, August 2, 1984, newspaper, August 2, 1984; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth753134/m1/2/: accessed June 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .