European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 9, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 12 the stars and stripes saturday september 9, 1978 James Reston Mideast Outlook less Bleak than year ago course we be eve in detente what other government is responsible for so much be Tenton there is an air of calculated caution if not pessimism about the meeting of car Ter begin and Sadat at Camp David but if such a meeting had been arranged a year ago after decades of War Between Cairo and Jerusalem it would probably have been hailed As an occasion for wonder and rejoicing. Prime minister begin who has a sense of history if not a sense of humor obviously has t come to Camp David to shatter the Reanis of King David who originally gave Israel its National Unity and charac Ter and developed a nation out of a collection of tribes and families. But the Outlook now is not quite As Bleak As it seemed at the turn of the seasons a year ago. At that time the Carter administration was still thinking seriously of arranging a Middle East conference at Geneva with column Sand comments the soviet Union As co chairman. This was such a predictable diplomatic disaster that startled begin into inviting Sadat to Jeru Salem and persuading Sadat to accept the invitation. Just a few weeks ago when the Early Hopes of a Middle East general Settle ment had vanished Sadat came up with an even worse idea than a Geneva Confer ence. According to officials Here he pro posed the following since he and begin had not been Able to agree on the future of the West Bank the Gaza strip the palestinians or the mean ing of in resolutions 242 and 338, some thing dramatic should be done to break the stalemate. Accordingly Sadat proposed that the leaders of the principal nations of the world the United states the soviet Union the people s Republic of China Britain France and West Germany should meet with the representatives of is Rael and Egypt preferably on a ship some where at sea to consider the unresolved problems of the Middle East. Officials in Washington agreed that any attempt to arrange such a conference would fail and that even if it could be arranged it would probably be the most spectacular sea going wreck since the Lusitania. Thereafter president Carter suggested the meeting at Camp David. So while the prospects for Success in the Maryland mountains Are not precisely Al luring they Are probably better than they might have been at Geneva or at sea. There Are one or two other hopeful crumbs. The illusions of the dramatic Sadat mis Sion to Jerusalem have vanished. A great Opportunity May have been missed at that Point but these three men at Camp David Are now Down to some hard realities. None of them is going to get what he wanted. The time for dramatic breakthroughs and general settlements is Over for the pre sent. The problem now is not to put for Ward what they All know Are non negotiable demands but to work around the problem and keep the talks going. In this process of Compromise Carter Sadat and begin have some things in com Mon. They Are All in trouble politically with their own people or at least with that thinking remnant which the hebrew prophets As Well As Plato thought might save nations from the excesses of the politicians and the multitude. There is no expectation now in the United states Egypt or Israel that their Lead ers Are going to Settle in a week at Camp David. Conflicts of philosophy and territory that have been going on since biblical times. All that is asked of them now is that they narrow the differences Between the two sides and. Avoid another Middle Eastern some reason that is not quite Clear but has to be taken seriously president Carter has got it in his head that there must be agreement to Compromise be tween begin and Sadat or there will be a serious crisis in october followed perhaps by War. This conviction also contributed to his Call for the Camp David meeting and even if there is the remotest Chance of this Carter s anxieties have to be another War with the new weapons now available to both sides in the Middle East could be much More serious than All the wars since the creation of the modern state of Israel. The military balance of Power clearly lies with Israel not Only in the air but in her capacity to deploy nuclear weapons if the life of the state were consequences of anything like this on the Oil supplies of the Middle East As Well As in the disruption of the Industrial world Are fairly obvious. With this Nightmare in mind no matter How Remote president Carter was undoubtedly right to bring begin and Sadat to the Summit and to insist so far As possible that the conversations be Frank and Pri Outlook is gloomy Only if you expect the conference to end at Camp David with a Clear Winner like David s Slingshot Victory Over Goliath. But this is precisely what Carter is trying to avoid. He has lowered his expectations but wants above All else to keep the two sides talking instead of fighting. C new York times Ira Eaker american air of Rengh Threa Feneck August 19 was the birthday of Orville Wright. In december of this year it will have been 75 years since Wright s first manned powered flight at Kitty that three Quarter Century particularly in recent years the United states has been the acknowledged world Leader in , the Best military aircraft Are de signed and built in the United states. Sev Enty percent of All commercial airline Pas sengers Are carried in american built sales of aviation products abroad is our largest Export after agricultural products. But our present preeminence in aerospace is now in great jeopardy. A critical examination of the reasons for this fateful Hazard reveals that much of it is our own fault because of unreasonable Law regulations and policies of our present political leadership. Without doubt this should be our Pri Mary concern As we observe our 75th Avia Tion anniversary. Candidate Carter said in a Campaign speech i am particularly concerned by our nation s role As the world s leading arms president Carter and his appointees have pursued a relentless ill advised policy to reduce such sales even to the free world nations including our South american allies. This policy is based on the belief that weapons cause wars when As a matter of fact it is International imbalance in weapons which Lead to National conflict. This , partly shared by Congress in such examples As the turkish arms embargo and reduced defense appropriations represents the greatest present master danger to our continued aerospace Preemie is no better example of this than our refusal to sell six Hundred million Dol Lars Worth of phantom fighters to Taiwan. This was done to Curry favor with red Chi a and to permit Israel to sell her Kfir fighters to free China in an Effort to Ini. Prove relations. Our current annual sales of aircraft nearly $10 billion annually could be Dou bled if our government supported its Aero -1 space Industry As do All our foreign competitors. This would give us a favourable Trade balance strengthen the falling Dol Lar decrease unemployment and reduce inflation. Legislation now before Congress and regulations issued thereon now pose a definite threat to our predominance in civil aviation. Discarding the principal provisions of the civil aviation act of 1926, which Cre ated the cab and the a a to regulate the airlines As now proposed is a distinct threat to the air industries. A further Hazard to aviation is it ire quent strikes. It is a Peculiar anomaly that our Best paid labor Force should pursue such policy dangerous to its own Well be ing. Another danger to our aerospace leadership results from our diminishing technological superiority. Our leadership in this Field is largely due to the excellence of our laboratories Anc the size and skill of our labor Force and scientific Community including our great universities. As our aerospace sales Are needless curtailed by shortsighted political policies Many of the laboratories and much of Thi technology can no longer be provided a the aerospace Industry As in the past. C los Angeles times
