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428080771
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Telephone Conversation with President Mubarak of Egypt, June 8, 1990
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1
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id
428080771
contentType
document
title
Telephone Conversation with President Mubarak of Egypt, June 8, 1990
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collections
Records of the National Security Council (George H. W. Bush Administration)
Presidential Telcon Files
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Egypt
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428080771
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8
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1990-06-08
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6
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1990
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nara-archive
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84d2968e421c2e09
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CONFIDENTIAL
MEMCON
IDENTIAL
4584 ADD ON
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
MEMORANDUM OF TELEPHONE CONVERSATION
SUBJECT:
Telephone Conversation with President Mubarak
of Egypt (U)
PARTICIPANTS:
The President
President Mubarak
C. David Welch, NSC, Notetaker
DATE, TIME
June 8, 1990; 10:33 - 1042 a.m. EST
AND PLACE:
Iowa
President Mubarak initiated the call; the President, traveling in
Iowa, was patched through by White House Signal. ()
The President: Hello, Hosni, how are you? (U)
President Mubarak: Hello, George, how are you? (U)
The President: I'll bet I know what you're calling about. Well,
I'm worried about the same thing, the dialogue with the PLO. But
I'm delighted to hear from you -- I followed your role in
Baghdad, and I want to tell you how much I appreciated it. (U)
President Mubarak: I sent you a message two hours ago outlining
the situation. Did you receive it? (C)
The President: No, I didn't see it, but I am in Iowa. When did
you send it? (C)
President Mubarak: I sent it about four hours ago. Please read
it. It is regarding the U.S. -PLO dialogue. It is very important
to keep it (the dialogue) now; if it is cut, it will create a
hell of a problem. (f)
The President: I realize that but there's another side. We have
concerns about these acts of terrorism. The PLO has renounced
terror but can't bring itself to denounce it. If they (the PLO)
don't denounce this terrorist action now it will be difficult to
maintain a dialogue with them. Have you got any idea what he
(Arafat) will do? (f)
DECLASSIFIED
PER E.O. 12958,
AS AMENDED
NOT
IDENTIAL
2000-0429-F
IDENTIAL
Declassify on: OADR
30 8/21/09
CONFDIENTIAL
2
President Mubarak: It is very difficult for Arafat. There are
different Palestinian factions that want to destroy peace. These
groups, like Abul Abbas and Habash, want to destroy Arafat, SO
they are doing this to corner him.
The President: Is he so weak that he can't condemn it?
(f)
President Mubarak: There is a balance of factions. Some do not
want to put it (terrorism) to an end. (C)
The President: Hosni, let me add something. We have other
serious concerns about the PLO and terrorism beyond this event
alone. I think the bottom line is clear: We would prefer to
keep the dialogue going but the PLO needs to make its choice
also. I think that they think they are not getting anything for
these talks. There is a need to push the peace process. (X)
President Mubarak: I am trying, but it is difficult. There is a
great benefit for your friends in the Arab world from the
dialogue. (L)
The President: I agree -- but this thing was so obvious. Did
you see that kid on TV talking about shooting up hotels and
vacationers? It would be hard to sustain the dialogue if Arafat
won't denounce that. (c)
President Mubarak: I'll try and will do what I can to get him to
make a statement. I'm doing a big effort with my neighbor
(Libya) They are in a terrible mess. You know he came here
right from Yemen. He's sending them out of Libya (the PLF)
the whole Abul Abbas group. I am also telling Shamir not to
retaliate now. (f)
The President: Your message is not here yet. There is a need to
denounce the act; then everything can be sustained. ()
President Mubarak: I am pressuring my neighbor. Really, I am
putting a hell of a pressure on him. He's sending those people
out.
(C)
The President: I hate this situation. I agree the talks have
been very good for the other moderates, the reasonable countries.
But this goes against the covenant he made. If he could denounce
it, then we could hold the line. I'm getting pressure from a lot
of quarters. (f)
President Mubarak: The composition of this council (the PLO
Executive Committee) is terrible. It is very difficult for him
to control. (f)
CONFIDENTIAL
CONTIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
3
The President: I saw that one member of the committee denounced
it. Arafat should say so himself. If he denounces Abul Abbas,
then that gives us something to work with.
(2)
President Mubarak: I will try; I'll do it today. (U)
The President: We see that a new government is being formed in
Israel. There are difficulties ahead
§
President Mubarak: That's life. (U)
The President: We will push ahead for the peace process. (U)
President Mubarak: I will wait for a few days until the new
government settles in. I'll try contacting Shamir again.
(C)
The President: That's helpful. I must say, he says the right
things. (L)
President Mubarak: Well, goodbye George. (U)
The President: Goodbye. (U)
CONFIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL