5 Exchange of Instruments of Ratification of the Treaty of Peace with Egypt- 25 April 1979

INSTRUMENT OF RATIFICATION

WHEREAS the Treaty of Peace between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt was approved by the Knesset on the 22nd day of March, 1979:

AND WHEREAS the said Treaty of Peace was done at Washington D.C. on the 26th day of March 1979, and was signed by Prime Minister Menachem Begin for the Government of Israel and by President Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat for the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and witnessed by Jimmy Carter, President of the United States of America, on the same day:

AND WHEREAS Article IX of the said Treaty of Peace provides that it shall enter into force upon exchange of instruments of ratification:

AND WHEREAS on the 1st day of April 1979 the Government of Israel, in accordance with the powers vested in it by law, decided to ratify the said Treaty of Peace:

AND WHEREAS the text of the said Treaty of Peace is word for word annexed hereto:

NOW THEREFORE it is hereby declared that the Government of Israel ratifies the Treaty of Peace between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF I, Yitzhak Navon, President of the State of Israel, have subscribed my signature and have caused the Seal of the State of Israel to be affixed hereunto at Jerusalem, this 23rd day of Nisan, Five Thousand Seven Hundred and Thirty-Nine, which corresponds to the 20th day of April, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy-Nine.

Countersigned:

INSTRUMENT OF RATIFICATION

WHEREAS the following documents accompanying the Treaty of Peace between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt were approved by the Knesset on the 22nd day of March 1979:

(1) Agreed Minutes to Articles, I, IV, V and VI and Annexes I and III of the Treaty of Peace:

(2) A letter from Jimmy Carter, President of the United States of America, to Prime Minister Menachern Begin on the implementation of the Treaty of Peace:

(3) An exchange of letters between President Jimmy Carter and Prime Minister Menachern Begin concerning the exchange of ambassadors between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt.

AND WHEREAS on the 26th day of March 1979 the said Agreed Minutes were signed at Washington D.C. by Prime Minister Menachern Begin for the Government of Israel and by President Mohamed Anwar El-Sadat for the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt and witnessed by President Jimmy Carter:

AND WHEREAS the said letters were also signed on the 26th day of March 1979:

AND WHEREAS on the 1st day of April 1979 the Government of Israel, in accordance with the powers vested in it by law, decided to ratify the said documents:

AND WHEREAS the texts of the said documents are word for word annexed hereto:

NOW THEREFORE it is hereby declared that the Government of Israel ratifies the said documents accompanying the Treaty of Peace.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF I, Yitzhak Navon, President of the State of Israel, have subscribed my signature and have caused the Seal of the State of Israel to be affixed hereunto at Jerusalem, this 23rd day of Nisan, Five Thousand Seven Hundred and ThirtyNine, which corresponds to the 20th day of April, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Seventy-Nine.

Countersigned:

Moshe Dayan
Minister of Foreign Affairs

Dear Mr. Prime Minister:

As Israel and Egypt exchange their Instruments of Ratification of the treaty of peace, I would like once again to express my congratulations and admiration. I know I speak for all Americans in sending you and your people our warmest wishes on this momentous occasion and our renewed pledge to go on working with you in the search for a comprehensive peace.

I was delighted to hear from you on the telephone how much you and President Sadat had accomplished during your visit to Cairo. I also talked to President Sadat the same day, and remain deeply impressed by the importance of the decisions you reached together. The rapid consolidation of bilateral contacts augurs well for the next stage of the negotiations. I am convinced that the confidence and trust established between the negotiating parties will be a major factor in bringing these talks to a satisfactory conclusion. In this respect, the early opening of the borders between Israel and Egypt and the establishment of an air corridor between the two countries are particularly heartening. I hope that, on your side, you will also be thinking of action Israel might take that would be helpful in increasing the sense of confidence and common purpose between Israel and Egypt.

Without your vision, your courage, your high ideals, and your sense of history, we could not have arrived at this glorious day. You deserve the gratitude of the Israeli people as well as all peace-loving peoples of the world.

Sincerely,

Jimmy Carter

Dear Mr. President,

I have just received your message dated 24 April.

Thank you, Mr. President, for your moving words of appreciation. May I say that yesterday was indeed a great, historic day for Egypt and Israel. We brought into effect the peace treaty. For 31 years there was a state of war between the two countries, five times in one generation their sons met in the battlefield. Since yesterday, that state of war is terminated. It is a turning-point in the annals of our two nations.

Dear Mr. President, this achievement is first and foremost the result of your permanent efforts during the arduous process at Camp David, in Washington, in Cairo and in Jerusalem. You are the architect of the edifice of peace in the Middle East for which Egypt and Israel laid the cornerstone. This is the reason why I wrote today, in a letter to the committee of the Norwegian Parliament, inter alia:

"By everything I know to be true, I am convinced that there is no man in the world more deserving of the 1979 Nobel Peace Prize than the President of the United States of America, Mr. Jimmy Carter."

Yours Respectfully and Sincerely,

Menachem Begin

The distinguished representative of the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Ambassador of the United States to Egypt, the Ambassador of the United States to Israel, colleagues, friends, ladies and gentlemen:

I believe I express the feelings of us all when I say there is something unusual and unique about this ceremony. We are, after all, meeting here today to perform what is, in essence, a formal act, which is why the leaders of our governments thought it proper and appropriate that we endow this event with celebration, that we give it the dignity worthy of this moment when the treaty of peace between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt comes into force. And so we gather together not only to carry out the act of exchange but also to give this deed symbolic expression of its historic meaning.

We vividly recall President Sadat's visit to Jerusalem when an Israeli guard of honor saluted and a military band played the national anthem of Israel. Today, both our anthems shall be heard in unison as the final common act of peace is consummated.

I can think of no gesture more beautiful or more meaningful. It symbolizes everything we aspire to accomplish as, from this day forth, we set about building the peace between us. What we do here today represents the will, the wish and the prayer of millions. It symbolizes the genuine aspiration of our two nations in whose name our countries' leaders negotiated and signed the treaty. The voices of our peoples have been clearly heard. They were manifestly heard in Israel at the Knesset debate when an historic majority vote endorsed the treaty of peace. They were heard in Egypt in the ratification debate of the People's Assembly and in the historic national referendum that followed.

It were as if both our nations, associated for all time by our ancient geography, heritage and culture, have made their rendezvous with history. Ours is a past, a present and a future that began with a common forefather, Abraham, and that will live on forever just as our ancient nations shall always live.

A whole generation has awaited this day. We are that generation. It is we who witnessed the agony of the battlefield. It is we who buried and mourned our dead. It is we who watched the suffering of our wounded, and it is therefore we who celebrate this moment with a prayer of thanksgiving in our hearts. Let the mutual sacrifices of the past cement our common resolve for the future to build a peace that will bestow life, prosperity and friendship upon the coming generations. This is the promise and the pledge contained in the treaty of peace between us.

This treaty is a first step. It is the first step towards the comprehensive peace we are determined to pursue and, in God's good time, to conclude. We pray that that time will come soon, for our governments are, as President Carter declared in the name of us all "waging peace." We are "vigorously waging peace." Our leaders shall yet win that battle of a comprehensive peace for the sake of this and all future generations.

My distinguished colleagues:

I am humbly proud to be here today as the representative of the Government of Israel for the exchange of the instruments of ratification of the treaty of peace between the State of Israel and the Arab Republic of Egypt. With this, the treaty of peace comes into force. Let us thank God for the dawning of this day.

"Bah haketz lamilhama - yehi hashalom."
"Intahat el-harb - yahya-salaam."
The war is over - long live the peace.