Israeli Diplomats Will Visit Soviet Union Next Month
Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard A. Shevardnadze said Thursday that a team of Israeli diplomats will visit the Soviet Union next month, but he added that full diplomatic relations cannot be resumed until Israel agrees to an international peace conference on the Middle East.
Shevardnadze made the statement to reporters after a meeting with Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir of Israel. Both men described the session as friendly and useful but without any breakthrough or flexibility on either side.
The Soviet official also said that emigration of Soviet Jews is continuing. He said there are some constraints, which he identified as “military secrets only.”
Referring to the issue of a Middle East conference under U.N. auspices, Shevardnadze said:
“My view is that Israel will finally accept the convening of a conference. We are very much convinced there is no other way. The (Arab-Israel) conflict has to be, must be, resolved.”
Shamir said that an Israeli consular team will visit the Soviet Union in late July.
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