Egypt’s Premier on Way to Washington : Mideast Peace, Response to Hijacking Expected to be Discussed

Egyptian Prime Minister Kamal Hassan Ali left for Washington on Monday to consult with Reagan Administration officials on Mideast peace efforts and on ways to curb terrorism in the wake of the hijacking of a TWA jet to Beirut, officials said.

Ali is expected to express Cairo’s concern that retaliatory options being considered by the Reagan Administration over the hijacking could undermine the current peace initiative sponsored by King Hussein of Jordan.

Before leaving for Washington, Ali conferred with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He told Egyptian reporters after the meeting that they discussed Mideast peace efforts and “the problem of world terrorism,” adding that he planned to raise both subjects during his talks in Washington.

The state-run Middle East News Agency also quoted Ali as saying he thinks there is a chance that seven Americans who have been kidnaped by Muslim terrorists in Beirut might be freed if the United States refrains from retaliatory action and retracts its call for an international boycott of Beirut airport.

Egypt was critical of President Reagan’s boycott demand, and Egyptian officials have privately expressed fears that retaliatory options reportedly being considered by the United States could sabotage planned talks between U.S. officials and a joint delegation of Jordanian and Palestinian representatives.

According to reports in the Egyptian press, those talks could get under way as early as the end of this month, when Richard W. Murphy, U.S. assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern and South Asian affairs, is expected to return to the region.

Diplomatic sources said that Hussein and Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat have now agreed on the names of the Palestinians for the delegation but that their choices will still need Washington’s approval. The State Department said Monday that it has received such a list of names.

Washington will not talk directly to the PLO because of the latter’s refusal to recognize Israel. But it has agreed to hold preliminary discussions with non-PLO members whose participation in the joint Jordanian-Palestinian delegation has been sanctioned by Arafat.

However, the “whole thing could fall through if the United States decides to retaliate for the hijacking by bombing terrorist targets or taking similar action,” one analyst said. “There is no way Arafat could afford to be seen as agreeing to talks with the United States if that happens.”

Egypt’s concern over this may be one reason Ali’s six-day visit was upgraded at the last moment from a private to an official working session, diplomats said.

A spokesman for the prime minister said that Ali’s itinerary in Washington was not yet fixed but that he hoped to meet with Secretary of State George P. Shultz and other officials.