Mitchell Tests Waters
For Possible Cabinet Post
JAMES IL BESSER WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT
fered the job, but he also made
it clear that he knows he is
among the front-runners.
Until now, Mr. Mitchell was
considered the leading contender
for the post, ahead of U.N. Am-
bassador Madeleine Albright.
resident Clinton may be
roaming the Far East, but
the jockeying for position
in his new Cabinet —
which will include up to seven
new members — continues
unabated. And Jewish groups
have become peripher-
al players in the game. -
Former Senate Ma-
jority Leader George
Mitchell met recently
with the leaders of
three major Jewish or-
ganizations to make
sure they won't erect
any obstacles to his
nomination to replace
retiring Secretary of
State Warren Christo-
pher.
Mr. Mitchell met in
separate sessions with
leaders of the American
Israel Public Affairs
Committee, the Con-
ference of Presidents of
Major American Jew-
• ish Organizations and
the Anti-Defamation
League. "He simply
wanted to clear the
decks, renew old ac-
quaintances and make
sure that there would
be no problems from
the Jewish groups,"
said one participant. Madeleine Albright: A contender.
"Clearly, he wouldn't
have asked for these meetings if But a White House aide's casu-
he wasn't actively interested in al dismissal of Ms. Albright as a
the job. But he specifically asked "second tier" candidate incensed
us not to lobby for. him; that women's groups, which have
been lobbying hard for her nom-
would be inappropriate."
Mr. Mitchell told the Jewish ination. And Ms. Albright, ac-
leaders that he had not been of- cording to Washington insiders,
p
Zaire Plan
Gets Support
everal Jewish groups ex-
pressed support for the
Clinton administration's
on-again, off-again plan to
use U.S. troops as part of a hu-
manitarian force to bring food
and other aid to Rwandan
refugees fleeing violence in
Zaire.
Leaders of the Union of Amer-
S
ican Hebrew Congregations and
the Central Conference of Amer-
ican Rabbis, which represents
some 1,700 Reform rabbis, wrote
to Mr. Clinton urging "decisive
action to stop the swell of vio-
lence and starvation in Zaire. If
the United States does not act
now to help innocent refugees in
Africa's Great Lakes region, we
has the support of first lady
Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Top pro-Israel activists seem
satisfied with both Mr. Mitchell
and Ms. Albright, although in
private several indicated a mild
preference for Ms. Albright be-
cause of her recent
foreign policy experi-
ence and her closer
contacts with the
Jewish community.
But either way, they
say, U.S.-Israel rela-
tions in the second
Clinton administra-
tion are likely to con-
tinue unimpaired.
"Both are very
much within the
mainstream of U.S.
policy," said ADL's
Washington director,
Jess Hordes. "And
both have been very
supportive of strong
U.S.-Israel relations."
In fact, Jewish
groups are being un-
usually scrupulous in
avoiding any high-
profile role in the
game of musical
chairs at Foggy Bot-
tom. -
Four years ago,
some pro-Israel
AP/OSAMU HONDA
groups quietly but
visibly opposed the
nomination of Mr. Christopher
to the post. That proved embar-
rassing when he got the nod —
and even more so when he
turned out to preside over the
most overtly pro-Israel foreign
policy team ever.
face the likely death of tens of
thousands of God's children."
The group used Jewish his-
tory to add moral weight to its
plea.
"To us, 'never again' is not just
a slogan, it is a firm, moral
commitment on our part not to
stand by — or to allow our gov-
ernment to stand by — in the
face of unspeakable hatred and
violence."
And the group insisted that
the administration, "through
mediation or force," establish
safe corridors for refugees seek-
ing food.
Leaders of the American Jew-
ish Congress specifically sug-
I
srael's new ambassador to
Washington, Eliyahu Ben-
Elissar, is eager to talk to his
Syrian counterpart. But the
Syrians, according to sources
here, are having none of it.
In recent getting-to-know-you
meetings with envoys from Rus-
sia and France, Mr. Ben-Elissar
was asked what representatives
of those two countries could do
to help move the peace talks for-
ward.
The ambassador, a Likud
hard-liner and former Knesset
member, suggested that they
use their influence to convince
the Syrians to resume direct
negotiations with Israel.
But according to sources
here, the Syrian Embassy
rebuffed his efforts. Instead,
Syria's representatives in
Washington are repeating de-
mands that Israel agree to
withdraw from all of the Golan
Heights as a precondition for
further negotiations.
Talks between the two coun-
tries at a remote conference
center in rural. Maryland were
suspended early in the year; the
chief negotiators during those
sessions were the Syrian and
Israel ambassadors to Wash-
ington.
Since the election of Prime
Minister Binyarnin Netanyahu
in May, calls for further nego-
tiations have alternated with
rumblings of war as Syrian
leader Hafez al-Assad, a mas-
ter at brinkmanship, tries to
pressure the Netanyahu gov-
ernment into resuming negoti-
ations where they left off under
the previous Israeli govern-
gested an American troop de-
ployment to help alleviate the
suffering in Zaire "subject to the
clear understanding that every
possible effort will be made to
safeguard the lives of our own
personnel and to minimize any
risk to their safety."
They, too, referred to the
world's indifference to the plight
of Jews in the past.
But Shoshana Bryen, special
projects director for the Jewish
Institute for National Security
Affairs, warned that any use of
troops in Zaire for humanitari-
an purposes could have unan-
ticipated consequences.
"Can we feed people without
merit. (Although Mr. Assad
demonstrated little willingness
to negotiate seriously then, ei-
ther.)
The Clinton administration,
distracted by the impending
changes in foreign policy per-
sonn.el and already frustrated
by Mr. Assad's intransigence,
has shown little interest in in-
vesting heavily in the Syrian-
Israel talks in recent weeks.
Haim al-Assad:
Master brinksmanship.
"The bottom line is still the
same, as far as Washington is
concerned," said a source close
to the peace talks. 'There's
nothing to indicate that Assad
is ready to get serious about the
talks, and there's nothing to in-
dicate that the Clinton admin-
istration can do much to change
his mind."
getting entangled in a very
complex argument about the
future of Africa? It's a very dif-
ficult call, because this is obvi-
ously a great tragedy taking
place," she said. "But it has to
be carefully thought out."
But the discussions may
prove academic; on Tuesday, of-
ficials here concluded that the
successful return of thousands
of refugees to Rwanda decreased
the number of American troops
required for the job. Represen-
tatives of a number of Western
countries participating in the
nascent humanitarian effort
were due to meet in Germany to
reassess the situation.
NO VEMB E R
O
Syria Says No
To Israel Talks
7