§ 5.0 p.m.
§ LORD ROWLEYMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government what action is to be taken to strengthen the United Nations Observer Force to enable them to fulfil their responsibilities on both sides of the Israel-Jordan borders.]
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, Her Majesty's Government strongly support any move likely to lead to a reduction in tension in the area and would favour the introduction of United Nations observers along the cease-fire line. This would be practicable, however, only if acceptable to both sides, which is not at present the case.
§ LORD ROWLEYMy Lords, if breaches of the cease-fire are to be avoided, should not the Security Council take steps to prevent further acts of provocation by Arab guerrilla forces against Israel? Secondly, may I ask my noble friend what the present situation is with regard to the Gunnar Jarring peace mission?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, as my noble friend will know, the resolution called upon both sides to abstain from any acts of violence, and it would indeed be a grave matter if either side flouted this resolution in the manner suggested. As for the Jarring mission, I understand that U Thant's envoy is in contact with all parties to this dispute, and the invitation to meet in Cyprus is still open. It is the opinion of Her Majesty's Government that it would be most desirable if the 852 parties concerned accepted this invitation and met round the table in Cyprus.
§ LORD BROCKWAYMy Lords, in view of the terrible urgency for action to prevent extended conflict in the Middle East, could my noble friend say, first, what approaches have been made to both sides in this dispute on the proposal which is made by my noble friend Lord Rowley; and secondly, what approaches have been made to the great Powers, because in the last resort they would be affected in this matter?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, representatives of the countries concerned were at the meeting of the Security Council and are therefore aware of the resolution. In addition, Her Majesty's Government have suggested to both the Jordanian and the Israeli Governments that it would be a great advantage to both sides if they accepted the principle of the United Nations observers being stationed along the cease-fire line. So we have done all within our power to call the attention of the two Governments to the desirability of this sort of action. I agree with my noble friend that there is an element of urgency here. At the same time, there is also a necessity to allow the temperature to die down; and the best thing at the present time would be for all the Governments in the area to consider most carefully the terms of the United Nations resolution.
§ LORD GRIMSTON OF WESTBURYMy Lords, would it not be as well to remember that there were observers before the Israeli-Arab dispute started, and that they were immediately withdrawn by the Secretary-General on request? So I do not think it would be of much use to put them back there if the same thing were to happen all over again.
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, as the noble Lord well knows, the observers can take up position in an area of a country only if the country concerned accepts their presence. That is why I said in the original Answer that the proposal would be practicable only if it was accept able to both sides.
§ LORD SEGALMy Lords, could Her Majesty's Government take any further action to ensure that a cease-fire really does mean a cease-fire, and to insist that 853 all organisations determined to violate the cease-fire, from whatever motive, are acting against the United Nations and against their own interest and ought speedily to be disbanded?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, I quite agree with my noble friend, as I think we all do, that the forces concerned should be speedily disbanded. The question is, how to effect this.
§ LORD BROCKWAYMy Lords, while appreciating all this difficulty, may I ask whether the urgent question is not that more observers should be appointed but that the United Nations Observer Force should be strengthened? It does not apply to observers only; it applies to effective peace-keeping forces in this area. Has that matter been put to both sides and to the great Powers?
§ LORD BESWICKMy Lords, the Question refers to the strengthening of the United Nations Observer Force. As a matter of fact, there is no United Nations Observer Force, either on the original borderline or on the cease-fire line. There are no observers there at the present time. We should like to see observers there, but you cannot have observers there unless the countries themselves are prepared to accept them. That is an elementary fact. The other elementary fact is—and in this I am sure I have the wholehearted support of my noble friend Lord Rowley, with whom I worked for many years working out the details of the sort of force that would be required—that we need a permanent United Nations force which in such an emergency as this could go to the area. But again it is not for Her Majesty's Government to do this. We can only put forward proposals and try to get agreement, which is what we are trying to do.