King Hassan of Morocco has been involved in Israel-Arab contacts for many years. A meeting between Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Tohami and Israel's Foreign Minister Dayan was held in Rabat in September 1977, paving the way for the Sadat visit. In October 1976 Prime Minister Rabin met King Hassan in Rabat. In April 1986 King Hassan challenged an Arab leader to meet with Israel. His views were that Israel must deal with the PLO and accept total withdrawal. Since the peace process was stalemated, there was a feeling that a high level contact with the Moroccan monarch would be useful. This would be the first open meeting between an Israeli and an Arab leader since the last Sadat-Begin summit in May 1981. Even before the return of the prime minister from Morocco, President Herzog praised the meeting as an important breakthrough. Text:
On the eve of Prime Minister Shimon Peres' trip to Morocco he came to inform me that all the arrangements had been made for his trip. He made constant reports on the contacts, and I gave him my blessing, because I view this as a most important precedent, an extremely important trip. I do not know what the consequences will be, but the very fact that a prime minister of Israel can overtly travel to an Arab state in an (Israeli) Air Force plane and be received openly there with full honors - openly for the first time - I consider a breakthrough. I hope that the meeting itself with King Hassan and the very trip will bring about a new and important breakthrough in the peace process.
Q. The Prime Minister has already met with King Hassan several times since arriving in Rabat. Perhaps you would care to share with us some of Peres' thoughts prior to his trip, which he shared with you.
A. He indeed shared them with me but I am not at liberty to discuss them. I can only say that I think this is a process - part of the historic process that indeed began with President Sadat's visit to Jerusalem. According to him we arrived at a watershed in the Middle East. The State of Israel has been accepted in the region. Of course, there are exceptions. But all in all, we have reached a state in which the very idea of negotiations with Israel, of discussions with Israel, is no longer ruled out, [but] is acceptable. There are of course problems: where will the meetings take place, what will they deal with, on what basis, and so on. But I believe that perhaps more than anything else, the Prime Minister's actual trip under such circumstances - openly - to Morocco, proves that we have truly passed an important watershed in the Middle East.
This trip perhaps proves, more than anything else, the tremendous progress that has been made - perhaps more in the region's subconsciousness, but now also in its consciousness.
Q. Do you, as someone who is well acquainted with the Middle East map, have the feeling that King Hussein will now more vigorously join in political talks, political negotiations, following this visit in Morocco?
A. That is a matter of interpretation and I do not wish to be a commentator regarding this matter. I will say that even if the visit does not produce immediate results, I believe that the actual existence of the visit is a historic milestone of the first rank.
Q. Will King Hassan visit Israel?
A. I do not know, but I hope that such a visit will be one of the ultimate [although] perhaps not immediate - results of this visit, let's say, of this process.