On Recognising Independence

After talking about the situation inside Israel Atashi began to explain its foreign policy. "As long as our independence is not accepted I do not forsee peace in the Middle East," he said, adding a little later the claim, "we do not deny independence to our neighbouring states."

This naturally led to the topic of Lebanon. "Israel went into Lebanon. I shouldn't deny any facts," asserted Atashi. He reminded the audience that the PLO is now fighting the UN troops, saying that this made him glad (presumably because the world could now see what sort of people the PLO are).

Although he made several references to PLO activities in the region Atashi did not seem to base his justification for the invasion on the retaliation line first adopted by Israel and its supporters. He argued that the conflict in Lebanon which flared up a few years ago was not between rightist and leftist groups, but was a religious conflict.

Turning to other Arab states, he said that since Jordan and Syria had expelled the PLO Lebanon was the only country in the region which tolerated their presence. The two points somehow coincided and indicated that Israel actually owed it to Lebanon to free it from PLO influences.

Although during his speech there were v very few interjections from the floor, on this point he was asked if that meant South Africa was justified in invading Angola to eliminate SWAPO. Atashi's answer was that he wan't an expert on southern Africa and didn't see how the two issues were related.

The emphasis on his views not being necessarily representative came into its own when he allowed that Israel would have to "withdraw substantially from territories occupied since 1967." Asked how far he said he wasn't a strategist and didn't know, but that it would have to be within "secure defensible borders."

Atashi finished his speech by telling everyone that Israel was the only country in the world which had managed to withstand four wars; wars directed at liquidating the state.