SINCE YOU ASKED.

EASY REFERENCE GUIDE

GUESTS
AT THE
TABLE

NOAM M.M. NEUSNER and AMY J. MEHLER

DIPLOMATIC SPAIN

Bilateral:

Both U.S. and Soviet
representatives want to in-
itiate discussion but not par-
ticipate. Therefore, they will
have an advisory role in the
talks. Their combined coop-
eration has been crucial to
get all the participants to
the table.

Linkage:

U.S. wants to "link" sup-
port for loan guarantees to
an Israeli halt of settlement
construction. The Israelis
refuse to accept that connec-
tion, arguing that it confuses
a humanitarian need with a
political dispute.

Limited autonomy:

The Egypt-Israel Camp
David Accords calll for Israel
to negotiate with Palestin-
ians for some degree of
autonomy. In one scenario,
Israel controls the security
and foreign affairs of the
area, while ceding civilian
and social government to the
Palestinians. Other sugges-
tions have Israel and Jordan
sharing sovereignty over the
West Bank.

Heider Abdul Shafi:

Chosen as the
site for the
conference
partly because
of its
diplomatic ties
to Israel and
the Arabs.

vir

King Hussein:

autonomy in West Bank and
Gaza in stages.

The ruler of Jordan, 55,
allowed Iraqi Scud missiles to
fly over Jordanian air space
and shell Israel during the
Persian Gulf War. Rose to
power in 1953 after crushing
leftist, civilian rebellion. Lost
West Bank in 1967 war of ag-
gression against Israel. The
U.S. regards him as a key
Arab moderate.

Water:

Hafez Assad:

Often overlooked for sexier
crude oil. Water may be the
key to regional cooperation
in the Middle East. Israel is
badly in need of water,
something the West Bank
can provide. Whatever set-
tlement is made, it will have
to include some shared
ownership of the water.

The Syrian president, 61,
wants Golan Heights back.
Refuses to attend regional
talks with Israel. Has con-
tinued stockpiling nuclear
arsenal from North Korea
since the Gulf War. Con-
sidered Israel's chief enemy.
Won't let several thousand
Syrian Jews leave the coun-
try.

r
d

//

•Coalition cabinet:

In Israel, popular elections
determine the number of
Knesset (parliament) seats
given to each party. A
government is formed by
fashioning a majority of the
seats together into a coali-
tion. In Israel, Yitzhak
Shamir formed a coalition of
far-right parties. Some of
these parties, with a small
cadre of electoral support,
nevertheless control some of
the most important policies
of the country, including
how much to put on the ne-
gotiating table.

rio

3 30'

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v

HISTORICAL

T ER MS

Intifada:

Palestinian uprising
begun in December 1987,
meaning "shake-off" in
Arabic. What once focused
on achieving autonomy has
turned Arab against Arab.

U.N. Security Resolution 242:

Passed after the 1967
Arab-Israeli war in an at-
tempt to forge a "just and
lasting peace." It requires
the withdrawal of Israeli
forces from occupied ter-
ritories, recognition of
Israel's right to exist
peacefully and a solution for
the plight of Palestinian
refugees.

U.N. Security Resolution 338:

Passed at the end of the
1973 Yom Kippur War, re-
iterates the call for peace in
the region and says Resolu-
tion 242 must be
implemented through
negotiation.

Camp David Accords:

In 1978, Israel and Egypt
achieved a peaceful relation-
ship through these accords.
Besides requiring full com-
pliance with UN Security
Resolutions 242 and 338, the
accords acknowledge the
importance of secure and
recognized borders. Israel
agreed to pursue negotia-
tions for some settlement of
the Palestinian refugee
problem, and committed
itself to establishing

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1991

The Palestinian physician,
71, chosen to head the 14-
member joint Palestinian-
Jordanian delegation. Re-
portedly linked to Fatah, the
mainstream faction of the
Palestinian Liberation
Organization.

7'7

EGYPT AND ISRAEL In 1979, Anwar Sadat of Egypt,
Menachem Begin of Israel and Jimmy Carter of the United
States signed a peace treaty that was the culmination of two
years of negotiations. (See Camp David Accords.)

36

•

King Carlos of Spain

Strategic Depth:

With pre-1967 borders,
Israel's narrowest strip of
land is only nine miles wide.
The West Bank, therefore,
gives Israel more room to
fight potential aggressors.

PROCEDURE

1. A brief, two or three day,
ceremonial opening, with
broad international par-
ticipation intended to meet
the Arab demand that the
direct negotiations be given
international legitimacy.
2. Four days after the
plenary session, three sets of
bilateral negotiations bet-
ween Israeli and Jordanian-
Palestinian delegations,
Israel and Syria and Israel
and Lebanon.
3. Five sets of multilateral
negotiations on regional
matters such as arms con-
trol, water, economic devel-
opment, refugee issues and
the environment two weeks
after the opening of the con-
ference.

King Fand:

The Saudi king lords over
4,000 Arab princes and is
considered the Custodian of
Mecca and Medina, Islam's
holiest sites. Defied Arab
foreign policy by allowing U.S.
troops and air force to defend
his kingdom during the Gulf
War.

Elias Hrawi:

Lebanon's president, 64, a
Maronite Catholic elected in
1989. Essentially a Syrian
puppet. Was permitted to
oversee the Arab League
Treaty which ended Leb-
anon's civil war.

Hosni Mubarak:

Egyptian President, 63,
leading Arab moderate, also
succeeded the late President
Anwar Sadat. Has not
allowed Arab criticism of the
Camp David Accords to
diminish Egypt's political
importance in the Middle
East.

James A. Baker III:

U.S. secretary of state,
committed to the peace talks
he spent the last eight mon-