HC Deb 13 April 1983 vol 40 cc408-9W
23. Mr. Woodall

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information was received from the recent Arab delegation as to whether Syria and the Palestine Liberation Organisation propose to withdraw from Lebanon.

Mr. Pym

The withdrawal of Syrian and Palestine Liberation Organisation forces from Lebanon was not discussed with the Arab League delegation during its visit to London, although there was general agreement that all foreign forces should be withdrawn as soon as possible. The Syrian Government and spokesmen for the Palestine Liberation Organisation have stated publicly that they are ready to withdraw their forces when Israeli forces leave. We fully support American efforts to secure the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon as soon as possible.

34. Mr. Latham

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what undertakings he sought from the recent deputation from the League of Arab states, headed by His Majesty King Hussein, that the Arab countries were ready to negotiate directly with Israel and to recognise its right to exist as a sovereign state behind secure and defensible borders; and what response he received.

Mr. Pym

We reaffirmed our view that if a comprehensive peace settlement is to be achieved, all the parties concerned will have to respect the principles set out in the Venice declaration, including Israel's right to existence and to security. As I have already made clear in response to my hon. Friend the Member for Epping Forest (Sir J. Biggs-Davison), the Arab side's presentation was based on the conclusions of the Fez summit.

40. Sir Geoffrey Johnson

Smith asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he received any reassurance from the Arab League delegation which recently visited London that the Arab states it represented will severally or collectively recognise the state of Israel and enter into direct peace negotiations with her.

Mr. Hurd

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave earlier to the hon. Member for Leigh (Mr. Cunliffe).