Extracts From Remarks Delivered by

Henry A. Kissinger

at the

American Jewish Congress

Presentation of the Stephen S. Wise Award to

Golda Meir

Sunday, November 13, 1977

We meet in the midst of another debate about peace
in the Middle East. Given my own involvement in the conduct
of foreign policy over eight years, I have thought it
inappropriate since January to participate in a discussion of
day-to-day tactics. But I would like to use this occasion
to articulate a few general principles.

First, the desirability of peace can never be at issue.
No people has suffered more from the absence of peace than
the people of Israel, every square mile of whose country is
drenched with the blood of its pioneers and whose existence
has never been recognized by any of its neighbors. No people
can be more aware of how fragile, and how precious, are the
restraints that make men and nations civilized.

No people knows more vividly that morality must be
more than a theory -- it must be a constant in human conduct.
And no group of men and women understands more acutely that
peace depends ultimately not on political arrangements but on
the conscience of mankind. History is often cruel, and rarely
logical and yet the wisest of realists are those who recognize
that fate can indeed be shaped by human faith and courage.
These qualities are what brought the state of Israel into being.

-2-

This spirit and pride must be nurtured by all friends of Israel for they are the ultimate guarantee of Israel's future.

But faith and courage are not enough. The people of Israel have seen too much of the transitoriness of human intentions to entrust the destiny of their nation entirely to professions and reassurances however sincere and honestly intended. A peace to be lasting must be founded on the self-interest of all the parties and for peace to be secure it must leave Israel strong enough to protect its future by its own efforts.

Second, the intentions or purposes of the government of the United States cannot be at issue. No President would knowingly risk the future of Israel. Nor would he make a deal to undermine Israel's future for some global considerations. My own acquaintance with President Carter, Secretary Vance and their senior advisors convinces me that this Administration would not deliberately put Israel's security at risk. But there is always the danger that actions undertaken in good faith may inadvertently produce unforeseen consequences. If such a miscalculation took place either Israel would become totally isolated or diplomacy would become abruptly deadlocked. The art of diplomacy is to move events carefully and shape them toward achievable ends so that neither the United States nor Israel ever face such a stark, impossible choice. A coordination of policies between Israel and the United States is therefore imperative.

Third, the perspective of a superpower and those of a small country may occasionally differ. The United States has enormous strength; Israel has a much narrower margin of safety. The United States can survive trial-and-error diplomacy, because we can always rectify mistakes by redoubling our efforts. But Israeli leaders cannot experiment; they have only one try. If they guess wrong they risk the survival of the nation. We therefore owe the people of Israel an understanding of its special circumstances -- all the more so as the country has known only war or the threat of war since its founding. At the same time, Israelis must understand the importance of Middle East peace to the global concerns of the United States and the Western world, which are indeed the essential underpinning of Israel's own security.

Fourth, an over-all solution is of course the ultimate prize. But realism forces us to recognize that to achieve it involves issues of enormous complexity and parties with an unequal commitment to peace. It also requires a process that is bound to be protracted. Thus while striving for an over-all settlement, we must take care not to foreclose other

-3-

opportunities that may arise to ease tensions and to enable
the peoples of the area to build confidence. We must
not give a veto to the most intransigent elements within
the area. We must not permit outside powers to emerge as
the advocates for a point of view that penalizes moderation.

Fifth, some structures develop their own momentum
that cannot be judged by formal declarations or abstract
blueprints. A Palestinian state on the West Bank is bound
to be an element of instability both for Jordan and for Israel;
it will compound the crisis not solve it. Such a state --
whatever the professions or guarantees -- must have objectives
that cannot be compatible with the tranquility of the Middle
East. It cannot be an accident that no attempt to create
such a state was ever made during the twenty years of Arab
rule in that territory.

Sixth, any peace settlement must of necessity involve
guarantees. But they must be worked out with great care and
with a sense for their limits. History should teach us that
guarantees by themselves are not a substitute for security.
No nation should be asked to abdicate its judgment of the
requirements of its survival. Care must be taken that
guarantees do not provide a pretext for an outside power to
intervene constantly in the affairs of the area. With
respect to bilateral US-Israeli treaty arrangements there
is the danger that the ratification process may produce a
debate that paradoxically hazards the friendship and close
cooperation which has served so well for a generation. In
short, guarantees require the most careful reflection and
study; at best they reinforce, they can not bring about
security.

Seventh, whatever the views about the desirability of
beginning the process of negotiations with a Geneva confer-
ence, so much effort has been invested in it that it has
become the touchstone of the prospects of peace. All parties
therefore have a stake in bringing such a conference into
being. At the same time we must recognize that when it is
finally assembled Geneva will be an important achievement, but
its primary significance will be procedural. Ahead of us
will be complex negotiations about frontiers, commitments
to peace, security arrangements, and other issues which will
test the wisdom and commitment of the parties.

-4-

These issues cannot be left to the pressures of a
conference; it is not too soon to explore them actively with
the parties. We cannot wait for Geneva to resolve all the
complexities that range from the relations of sub-groups
to the main conference to the concrete outlines of a definition
of peace. Especially as far as Israel is concerned it is
incompatible with our historic relationship to deal with
issues of such gravity in an atmosphere of self-imposed
deadlines. And it does not help those Arab leaders who have
had the wisdom and the courage to begin the journey towards
peace to raise expectations that cannot be fulfilled.

Geneva will be successful to the extent that Israel
and the United States end the cycle of fear and reassurance,
of outraged protest and soothing generalities and turn to the
elaboration of a common concrete approach. This requires
a willingness on one side to give the benefit of the doubt
and a readiness on the other to understand the anguish of
a people whose historic suffering precludes the abdication
of its own judgment, but whose martyrs guarantee that
the search for peace, while painful, will be dedicated and
committed.

I am convinced that the problems that form the head-
lines of the day are soluble. In all my efforts in the
Middle East, whatever the temporary disagreements, we never
failed to develop a common position with our friends in Israel.
It was during Golda's term as Prime Minister and that of her
distinguished successor, that the steps were taken that give
us hope for even greater progress now. I have every confidence
that the present Israeli government will do no less. And
in my experience, at the end of the day, Israel has never
rejected a chance to make progress towards a settlement, or
to run risks for peace. I have no doubt that we will find a
willing -- if complicated -- partner in a dialogue that
emphasizes substance not procedure and in a quest that defines
specific objectives, not theoretical blueprints. The Jewish
people has not survived through the millenia by being found
wanting of vision in its hours of need. And the American
people have not been the hope of mankind through their history
by subordinating moral values to tactical expedience.

SENATOR JAVITS, RABBI HERTZBERG, RABBI KLEIN, MAYOR BEAME, MAYOR-ELECT KOCH, SENATOR METZENBAUM, MRS. MEIR, DISTINGUISHED GUESTS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

WE ARE PRIVILEGED TONIGHT TO BE IN THE PRESENCE OF
AN EXTRAORDINARY HUMAN BEING. GOLDA MEIR LED HER PEOPLE
WITH WISDOM AND COURAGE IN THEIR HOUR OF NEED, AND
LEFT HER MARK ON HISTORY. I MIGHT ADD THAT SHE ALSO
LEFT SEVERAL MARKS ON ME -- I STILL HAVE THE SCARS.

I HAVE ALWAYS ADMIRED GOLDA AND LOVED HER FOR HER
STRENGTH, FOR HER WISDOM AND FOR HER HUMANITY. HER LIFE
IS TESTIMONY NOT ONLY OF THE HISTORY OF AN INDIVIDUAL BUT
OF THE DESTINY OF A PEOPLE. IT IS MARKED BY THE FAITH
THAT MADE IDEALISTS OF ORDINARY MEN AND WOMEN AND DROVE
THEM TO A WASTELAND TO FULFILL AN HISTORIC VISION. IT
IS ETCHED WITH THE FORTITUDE OF THE SURVIVORS OF THE
HOLOCAUST DETERMINED THAT NEVER AGAIN WOULD THEY SURRENDER

-2-

M

THE ULTIMATE DECISION OVER THEIR DESTINY. AND IT HAS BEEN SUFFUSED WITH THE COMPASSION AND HUMANITY BORN OF THE SUFFERING OF MILLENIA AND THE DEEP INSTINCTIVE KNOWLEDGE THAT MAN IS THE ULTIMATE MEASURE OF ALL THINGS.

WE LOVE GOLDA BECAUSE HER VALUES GO BEYOND THE BOUNDS OF HER PEOPLE. THEY SPEAK OF THE WORTH OF ALL HUMANITY. THEY REMIND US THAT THE FUNDAMENTAL ASPIRATIONS TO LIBERTY AND JUSTICE AND SERVICE ARE NOT REALIZED FINALLY FOR THE JEWISH PEOPLE UNLESS THEY ARE REALIZED FOR ALL MEN AND WOMEN AND CONVERSELY THAT THEY ARE NOT SECURE FOR MANKIND UNLESS THEY ARE SECURE FOR THE JEWISH PEOPLE.

GOLDA ALWAYS RECALLS US TO FUNDAMENTALS. SHE SHAMES THE EXPEDIENT AND THE SECOND-RATE. SHE REFLECTS A UNIVERSAL CONSCIENCE -- THE NEED FOR A WORLD IN WHICH THE WEAK ARE PROTECTED BY A GENERAL ORDER, IN WHICH JUSTICE

[y]

-3-

IS NOT A SUBTERFUGE FOR THE DOMINANCE OF THE POWERFUL
AND IN WHICH PEACE IS BASED ON TRUE TRUST AND
RECONCILIATION.

ALL OF US HERE KNOW THAT HISTORY WILL RECORD THAT
HER TERM AS PRIME MINISTER WAS A TURNING POINT. WITH
SUBLIME COURAGE SHE LED HER PEOPLE THROUGH A PERIOD OF
TRAGIC WAR, AND WITH TREMENDOUS VISION THROUGH TWO CRUCIAL
NEGOTIATIONS WITH EGYPT AND SYRIA THAT WILL BE SEEN, I
AM CONFIDENT, AS THE BEGINNING OF THE JOURNEY TOWARD
REAL PEACE.

I HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF WORKING WITH GOLDA DURING
SOME PHASES OF THAT PROCESS. I WILL NOT INSULT YOUR
INTELLIGENCE BY PRETENDING THAT GOLDA WAS ALWAYS EASY TO
DEAL WITH. SHE DID NOTHING TO DISPROVE ABBA EBAN'S STATEMENT
THAT ISRAELIS DEFINE OBJECTIVITY AS 100% AGREEMENT WITH
THEIR POINT OF VIEW. AND ON THE OCCASIONS WHEN I DID NOT
IMMEDIATELY EMBRACE THE TOTAL VALIDITY OF HER CONSIDERATIONS

[y]

-4-

SHE SHOWERED ON ME THE OUTRAGE RESERVED FOR THE
OBTUSENESS OF A SPECIALLY FAVORED NEPHEW. MY WIFE IS
FOND OF SAYING THAT SOME OF THE BEST DRAMATIC PERFORMANCES
SHE EVER WITNESSED OCCURRED DURING DEBATES BETWEEN
GOLDA AND ME.

BUT I AM PROUD THAT WE ALWAYS CAME TO AN AGREEMENT --
NOT RELUCTANTLY, NOT BASED ON TESTS OF STRENGTH BUT ON
A SHARED KNOWLEDGE THAT THE SECURITY OF ISRAEL IS A
MORAL IMPERATIVE FOR ALL FREE PEOPLES. WE NEVER DIFFERED
IN OUR CONVICTION THAT A JUST PEACE CANNOT BE AN IMPOSED
PEACE. A JUST PEACE MUST BE A PEACE WHICH THE PARTICIPANTS
ACCEPT AND FEEL A STAKE IN PRESERVING. AND THEREFORE THE
PROCESS BY WHICH PEACE IS MADE IS ALMOST AS IMPORTANT AS THE
FINAL OUTCOME. AT EACH STAGE THE PARTIES MUST FEEL THAT
IT WAS THEIR DECISION AND NOT SOMEBODY ELSE'S THAT BROUGHT
ABOUT THE RESULT.

-5-

WE MEET IN THE MIDST OF ANOTHER DEBATE ABOUT PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST. GIVEN MY OWN INVOLVEMENT IN THE CONDUCT OF FOREIGN POLICY OVER EIGHT YEARS, I HAVE THOUGHT IT INAPPROPRIATE SINCE JANUARY TO PARTICIPATE IN A DISCUSSION OF DAY-TO-DAY TACTICS. BUT I WOULD LIKE TO USE THIS OCCASION TO ARTICULATE A FEW GENERAL PRINCIPLES.

FIRST, THE DESIRABILITY OF PEACE CAN NEVER BE AT ISSUE. NO PEOPLE HAS SUFFERED MORE FROM THE ABSENCE OF PEACE THAN THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL, EVERY SQUARE MILE OF WHOSE COUNTRY IS DRENCHED WITH THE BLOOD OF ITS PIONEERS AND WHOSE EXISTENCE HAS NEVER BEEN RECOGNIZED BY ANY OF ITS NEIGHBORS. NO PEOPLE CAN BE MORE AWARE OF HOW FRAGILE, AND HOW PRECIOUS, ARE THE RESTRAINTS THAT MAKE MEN AND NATIONS CIVILIZED.

NO PEOPLE KNOWS MORE VIVIDLY THAT MORALITY MUST BE MORE THAN A THEORY -- IT MUST BE A CONSTANT IN HUMAN

-6-

CONDUCT. AND NO GROUP OF MEN AND WOMEN UNDERSTANDS MORE ACUTELY THAT PEACE DEPENDS ULTIMATELY NOT ON POLITICAL ARRANGEMENTS BUT ON THE CONSCIENCE OF MANKIND. HISTORY IS OFTEN CRUEL, AND RARELY LOGICAL AND YET THE WISEST OF REALISTS ARE THOSE WHO RECOGNIZE THAT FATE CAN INDEED BE SHAPED BY HUMAN FAITH AND COURAGE. THESE QUALITIES ARE WHAT BROUGHT THE STATE OF ISRAEL INTO BEING. THIS SPIRIT AND PRIDE MUST BE NURTURED BY ALL FRIENDS OF ISRAEL FOR THEY ARE THE ULTIMATE GUARANTEE OF ISRAEL'S FUTURE.

BUT FAITH AND COURAGE ARE NOT ENOUGH. THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL HAVE SEEN TOO MUCH OF THE TRANSITORINESS OF HUMAN INTENTIONS TO ENTRUST THE DESTINY OF THEIR NATION ENTIRELY TO PROFESSIONS AND REASSURANCES HOWEVER SINCERE AND HONESTLY INTENDED. A PEACE TO BE LASTING MUST BE FOUNDED ON THE SELF-INTEREST OF ALL THE PARTIES AND FOR PEACE TO BE SECURE IT MUST LEAVE ISRAEL STRONG ENOUGH TO PROTECT ITS FUTURE BY ITS OWN EFFORTS.

-7-

SECOND, THE INTENTIONS OR PURPOSES OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES CANNOT BE AT ISSUE.

NO PRESIDENT WOULD KNOWINGLY RISK THE FUTURE OF ISRAEL. NOR WOULD HE MAKE A DEAL TO UNDERMINE ISRAEL'S FUTURE FOR SOME GLOBAL CONSIDERATIONS. MY OWN ACQUAINTANCE WITH PRESIDENT CARTER, SECRETARY VANCE AND THEIR SENIOR ADVISORS CONVINCES ME THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION WOULD NOT DELIBERATELY PUT ISRAEL'S SECURITY AT RISK. BUT THERE IS ALWAYS THE DANGER THAT ACTIONS UNDERTAKEN IN GOOD FAITH MAY INADVERTENTLY PRODUCE UNFORESEEN CONSEQUENCES. IF SUCH A MISCALCULATION TOOK PLACE EITHER ISRAEL WOULD BECOME TOTALLY ISOLATED OR DIPLOMACY WOULD BECOME ABRUPTLY DEADLOCKED. THE ART OF DIPLOMACY IS TO MOVE EVENTS CAREFULLY AND SHAPE THEM TOWARD ACHIEVABLE ENDS SO THAT NEITHER THE UNITED STATES NOR ISRAEL EVER FACE SUCH A STARK, IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE. A COORDINATION OF POLICIES BETWEEN ISRAEL AND THE UNITED STATES IS THEREFORE IMPERATIVE.

[4]

-8-

THIRD, THE PERSPECTIVE OF A SUPERPOWER AND THOSE
OF A SMALL COUNTRY MAY OCCASIONALLY DIFFER. THE
UNITED STATES HAS ENORMOUS STRENGTH; ISRAEL HAS A MUCH
NARROWER MARGIN OF SAFETY. THE UNITED STATES CAN
SURVIVE TRIAL-AND-ERROR DIPLOMACY, BECAUSE WE CAN ALWAYS
RECTIFY MISTAKES BY REDOUBLING OUR EFFORTS. BUT ISRAELI
LEADERS CANNOT EXPERIMENT; THEY HAVE ONLY ONE TRY. IF
THEY GUESS WRONG THEY RISK THE SURVIVAL OF THE NATION.
WE THEREFORE OWE THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL AN UNDERSTANDING OF
ITS SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES -- ALL THE MORE SO AS THE
COUNTRY HAS KNOWN ONLY WAR OR THE THREAT OF WAR SINCE ITS
FOUNDING. AT THE SAME TIME, ISRAELIS MUST UNDERSTAND THE
IMPORTANCE OF MIDDLE EAST PEACE TO THE GLOBAL CONCERNS OF
THE UNITED STATES AND THE WESTERN WORLD, WHICH ARE INDEED
THE ESSENTIAL UNDERPINNING OF ISRAEL'S OWN SECURITY.

[Y]

-9-

FOURTH, AN OVER-ALL SOLUTION IS OF COURSE THE ULTIMATE
PRIZE. BUT REALISM FORCES US TO RECOGNIZE THAT TO ACHIEVE
IT INVOLVES ISSUES OF ENORMOUS COMPLEXITY AND PARTIES WITH
AN UNEQUAL COMMITMENT TO PEACE. IT ALSO REQUIRES A PROCESS
THAT IS BOUND TO BE PROTRACTED. THUS WHILE STRIVING FOR AN
OVER-ALL SETTLEMENT, WE MUST TAKE CARE NOT TO FORECLOSE OTHER
OPPORTUNITIES THAT MAY ARISE TO EASE TENSIONS AND TO ENABLE
THE PEOPLE OF THE AREA TO BUILD CONFIDENCE. WE MUST
NOT GIVE A VETO TO THE MOST INTRANSIGENT ELEMENTS WITHIN
THE AREA. WE MUST NOT PERMIT OUTSIDE POWERS TO EMERGE AS
THE ADVOCATES FOR A POINT OF VIEW THAT PENALIZES MODERATION.

~~WE MUST NURTURE THE HOPEFUL HUMAN UNDERSTANDING EVIDENT IN~~

THE EXCHANGE OF THIS PAST WEEK BETWEEN THE PRIME MINISTER OF
ISRAEL AND THE PRESIDENT OF EGYPT AND ENCOURAGE ITS SPREAD TO
OTHER PARTIES.

FIFTH, SOME STRUCTURES DEVELOP THEIR OWN MOMENTUM

THAT CANNOT BE JUDGED BY FORMAL DECLARATIONS OR ABSTRACT

-10-

BLUEPRINTS. A PALESTINIAN STATE ON THE WEST BANK IS BOUND
TO BE AN ELEMENT OF INSTABILITY BOTH FOR JORDAN AND FOR
ISRAEL; IT WILL COMPOUND THE CRISIS NOT SOLVE IT. SUCH A
STATE - WHATEVER THE PROFESSIONS OR GUARANTEES - MUST HAVE
OBJECTIVES THAT CANNOT BE COMPATIBLE WITH THE TRANQUILITY
OF THE MIDDLE EAST. IT CANNOT BE AN ACCIDENT THAT NO ATTEMPT
TO CREATE SUCH A STATE WAS EVER MADE DURING THE TWENTY YEARS
OF ARAB RULE IN THAT TERRITORY.

SIXTH, ANY PEACE SETTLEMENT MUST OF NECESSITY INVOLVE
GUARANTEES. BUT THEY MUST BE WORKED OUT WITH GREAT CARE AND
WITH A SENSE FOR THEIR LIMITS. HISTORY SHOULD TEACH US THAT
GUARANTEES BY THEMSELVES ARE *NOT* A SUBSTITUTE FOR SECURITY.
NO NATION SHOULD BE ASKED TO ABDICATE ITS JUDGMENT OF THE
REQUIREMENTS OF ITS SURVIVAL. CARE MUST BE TAKEN THAT
GUARANTEES DO NOT PROVIDE A PRETEXT FOR AN OUTSIDE POWER
TO INTERVENE CONSTANTLY IN THE AFFAIRS OF THE AREA. WITH
RESPECT TO BILATERAL U.S.-ISRAELI TREATY ARRANGEMENTS THERE

-11-

IS THE DANGER THAT THE RATIFICATION PROCESS MAY PRODUCE A
DEBATE THAT PARADOXICALLY HAZARDS THE FRIENDSHIP AND CLOSE
COOPERATION WHICH HAS SERVED SO WELL FOR A GENERATION. IN
SHORT, GUARANTEES REQUIRE THE MOST CAREFUL REFLECTION AND
STUDY; AT BEST THEY REINFORCE, THEY CAN NOT BRING ABOUT
SECURITY.

SEVENTH, WHATEVER THE VIEWS ABOUT THE DESIRABILITY OF
BEGINNING THE PROCESS OF NEGOTIATIONS WITH A GENEVA CONFER-
ENCE, SO MUCH EFFORT HAS BEEN INVESTED IN IT THAT IT HAS
BECOME THE TOUCHSTONE OF THE PROSPECTS OF PEACE. ALL PARTIES
THEREFORE HAVE A STAKE IN BRINGING SUCH A CONFERENCE INTO
BEING. AT THE SAME TIME WE MUST RECOGNIZE THAT WHEN IT IS
FINALLY ASSEMBLED GENEVA WILL BE AN IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT,
BUT ITS PRIMARY SIGNIFICANCE WILL BE PROCEDURAL. AHEAD OF
US WILL BE COMPLEX NEGOTIATIONS ABOUT FRONTIERS, COMMITMENTS
TO PEACE, SECURITY ARRANGEMENTS, AND OTHER ISSUES WHICH WILL
TEST THE WISDOM AND COMMITMENT OF THE PARTIES.

-12-

THESE ISSUES CANNOT BE LEFT TO THE PRESSURES OF A
CONFERENCE; IT IS NOT TOO SOON TO EXPLORE THEM ACTIVELY
WITH THE PARTIES. WE CANNOT WAIT FOR GENEVA TO RESOLVE
ALL THE COMPLEXITIES THAT RANGE FROM THE RELATIONS OF SUB-
GROUPS TO THE MAIN CONFERENCE TO THE CONCRETE OUTLINES OF
A DEFINITION OF PEACE. ESPECIALLY AS FAR AS ISRAEL IS CON-
CERNED IT IS INCOMPATIBLE WITH OUR HISTORIC RELATIONSHIP TO
DEAL WITH ISSUES OF SUCH GRAVITY IN AN ATMOSPHERE OF SELF-
IMPOSED DEADLINES. AND IT DOES NOT HELP THOSE ARAB LEADERS
WHO HAVE HAD THE WISDOM AND THE COURAGE TO BEGIN THE
JOURNEY TOWARDS PEACE TO RAISE EXPECTATIONS THAT CANNOT BE
FULFILLED.

GENEVA WILL BE SUCCESSFUL TO THE EXTENT THAT ISRAEL
AND THE UNITED STATES END THE CYCLE OF FEAR AND REASSURANCE,
OF OUTRAGED PROTEST AND SOOTHING GENERALITIES AND TURN TO
THE ELABORATION OF A COMMON CONCRETE APPROACH. THIS REQUIRES
A WILLINGNESS ON ONE SIDE TO GIVE THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT

-13-

AND A READINESS ON THE OTHER TO UNDERSTAND THE ANGUISH OF
A PEOPLE WHOSE HISTORIC SUFFERING PRECLUDES THE ABDICATION
OF ITS OWN JUDGMENT, BUT WHOSE MARTYRS GUARANTEE THAT THE
SEARCH FOR PEACE, WHILE PAINFUL, WILL BE DEDICATED AND
COMMITTED.

I AM CONVINCED THAT THE PROBLEMS THAT FORM THE HEAD-
LINES OF THE DAY ARE SOLUBLE. IN ALL MY EFFORTS IN THE
MIDDLE EAST, WHATEVER THE TEMPORARY DISAGREEMENTS, WE NEVER
FAILED TO DEVELOP A COMMON POSITION WITH OUR FRIENDS IN
ISRAEL. IT WAS DURING GOLDA'S TERM AS PRIME MINISTER AND
THAT OF HER DISTINGUISHED SUCCESSOR, THAT THE STEPS WERE
TAKEN THAT GIVE US HOPE FOR EVEN GREATER PROGRESS NOW. I
HAVE EVERY CONFIDENCE THAT THE PRESENT ISRAELI GOVERNMENT
WILL DO NO LESS. AND IN MY EXPERIENCE, AT THE END OF THE
DAY, ISRAEL HAS NEVER REJECTED A CHANCE TO MAKE PROGRESS
TOWARDS A SETTLEMENT, OR TO RUN RISKS FOR PEACE. I HAVE
NO DOUBT THAT WE WILL FIND A WILLING -- IF COMPLICATED --

-14-

PARTNER IN A DIALOGUE THAT EMPHASIZES SUBSTANCE NOT PROCEDURE AND IN A QUEST THAT DEFINES SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES, NOT THEORETICAL BLUEPRINTS. THE JEWISH PEOPLE HAS NOT SURVIVED THROUGH THE MILLENIA BY BEING FOUND WANTING OF VISION IN ITS HOURS OF NEED. AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE HAVE NOT BEEN THE HOPE OF MANKIND THROUGH THEIR HISTORY BY SUBORDINATING MORAL VALUES TO TACTICAL EXPEDIENCE.

SO LET US END THE CONTROVERSIES AND TURN TO THE FUTURE.
AND GOLDA, WHOM WE HONOR, WATCHFUL, DEEPLY DEVOTED,
INFINITELY CARING, SYMBOLIZES OUR NECESSITY AND GUARANTEES
OUR OPPORTUNITY.

GOLDA IS AN IDEALIST WITHOUT ILLUSIONS. SHE BELIEVES
IN STRENGTH AND AT THE SAME TIME YEARNS HEART AND SOUL FOR
PEACE. GOLDA WAS A FEROCIOUS NEGOTIATOR AND A WOMAN OF
POWERFUL CONVICTIONS. BUT, WHEN SHE GAVE YOU HER WORD, YOU
COULD ABSOLUTELY COUNT ON IT. ONCE SHE MADE UP HER MIND TO
DO SOMETHING, EVEN IF IT WAS DIFFICULT AND PAINFUL, SHE

[4]

-15-

FOLLOWED THROUGH WITH ENORMOUS COURAGE AND EXTRAORDINARY
ABILITY. SHE WAS A TRUE LEADER AND A GREAT STATESMAN.
AND I AM PROUD TO SAY SHE WAS AND REMAINS A TRUE FRIEND.

TONIGHT IT IS APPROPRIATE THAT SHE IS HONORED BY THE
AMERICAN JEWISH CONGRESS, WHOSE VERY FIRST CONVENTION, IN
1918 IN PHILADELPHIA, SHE ATTENDED AS A 20-YEAR-OLD DELEGATE
FROM MILWAUKEE. NO ONE BETTER REPRESENTS THE INDOMITABLE
SPIRIT OF HER PEOPLE. NO ONE IS SO UNIVERSALLY ADMIRED AND
LOVED. WE OWE IT TO GOLDA TO BUILD A WORLD IN WHICH MOTHERS
NEED NO LONGER FEAR FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR CHILDREN, IN
WHICH HOLOCAUSTS BECOME ATTRIBUTES OF AN INCOMPREHENSIBLE
PAST, IN WHICH THE STRUGGLES OF GOLDA'S GENERATION WILL BE
VALIDATED BY A WORLD IN WHICH ALL PEOPLE'S WILL AT LAST
LIVE TOGETHER IN GENUINE SECURITY AND TURN THEIR ENERGIES
TO THE TASKS OF CONSTRUCTION.

SO YOU SEE, GOLDA, WHAT YOU HAVE MADE ME DO -- A LONG
SPEECH WITHOUT THE IMPATIENT INTERRUPTION THAT WOULD HAVE

-16-

LONG SINCE BEEN MY LOT IN THAT LITTLE STUDY IN YOUR RESIDENCE
WHERE WE SPENT SO MANY HOURS THAT I SHALL ALWAYS TREASURE,

THERE REMAINS ONLY FOR ME TO SAY: GOLDA, YOU HAVE
INSPIRED US. MAY YOU LIVE A LONG TIME, FOR YOUR LIFE IS OUR
GLORY.

IT IS A GREAT PERSONAL HONOR FOR ME TO INVITE GOLDA
MEIR TO THE PODIUM TO GIVE HER THIS SMALL TOKEN OF OUR
ENORMOUS AFFECTION, THE STEPHEN WISE MEDALLION.

THE MEDALLION READS: "GOLDA MEIR: FOR A LIFETIME OF
COURAGEOUS AND INSPIRING LEADERSHIP OF THE JEWISH PEOPLE."

[Y]

Remarks by Henry A. Kissinger

Presentation of Wise Award to

Golda Meir

Sunday, November 13, 1977

We are privileged tonight to be in the presence of an extraordinary human being. Golda Meir led her people with wisdom and courage in their hour of need, and left her mark on history.

I have always admired Golda and loved her for her strength, for her wisdom and for her humanity. Her life is testimony not only of the history of an individual but of the destiny of a people. It is marked by the faith that made idealists of ordinary men and women and drove them to a wasteland to fulfill an historic vision. It is etched with the fortitude of the survivors of the holocaust determined that never again would they surrender the ultimate decision over their destiny. And it has been suffused with the compassion and humanity born of the suffering of millenia and the deep instinctive knowledge that man is the ultimate measure of all things.

We love Golda because her values go beyond the bounds of her people. They speak of the worth of all humanity. They remind us that the fundamental aspirations to liberty and justice and service are not realized finally for the Jewish people unless they are realized for all men and women and conversely that they are not secure for mankind unless they are secure for the Jewish people.

Golda always recalls us to fundamentals. She shames the expedient and the second-rate. She reflects a universal conscience -- the need for a world in which the weak are protected by a general order, in which justice is not a subterfuge for the dominance of the powerful and in which peace is based on true trust and reconciliation.

All of us here know that history will record that her term as Prime Minister was a turning point. With sublime courage she led her people through a period of tragic war, and with tremendous vision through two crucial negotiations with Egypt and Syria that will be seen, I am confident, as the beginning of the journey toward real peace.

-2-

LY

I had the privilege of working with Golda during some phases of that process. I will not insult your intelligence by pretending that Golda was always easy to deal with. She did nothing to disprove Abba Eban's statement that Israelis define objectivity as 100% agreement with their point of view. And on the occasions when I did not immediately embrace the total validity of her considerations she showered on me the outrage reserved for the obtuseness of a specially favored nephew. My wife is fond of saying that some of the best dramatic performances she ever witnessed occurred during debates between Golda and me.

But I am proud that we always came to an agreement -- not reluctantly, not based on tests of strength but on a shared knowledge that the security of Israel is a moral imperative for all free peoples. We never differed in our conviction that a just peace cannot be an imposed peace. A just peace must be a peace which the participants accept and feel a stake in preserving. And therefore the process by which peace is made is almost as important as the final outcome. At each stage the parties must feel that it was their decision and not somebody else's that brought about the result.

-3-

But faith and courage are not enough. The people of
Israel have seen too much of the transitoriness of human
intentions to entrust the destiny of their nation entirely
to professions and reassurances however sincere and honestly
intended. A peace to be lasting must be founded on the self-
interest of all the parties and for peace to be secure it must
leave Israel strong enough to protect its future by its own
efforts.

Third, the perspective of a superpower and those of
a small country may occasionally differ. The United States
has enormous strength; Israel has a much narrower margin of
safety. The United States can survive trial-and-error
diplomacy, because we can always rectify mistakes by redoubling
our efforts. But Israeli leaders cannot experiment; they have
only one try. If they guess wrong they risk the survival of
the nation. We therefore owe the people of Israel an under-
standing of its special circumstances -- all the more so as the
country has known only war or the threat of war since its
founding. At the same time, Israelis must understand the
importance of Middle East peace to the global concerns of
the United States and the Western world, which are indeed the
essential underpinning of Israel's own security.

-4-

[y]

Seventh, whatever the views about the desirability of beginning the process of negotiations with a Geneva conference, so much effort has been invested in it that it has become the touchstone of the prospects of peace. All parties therefore have a stake in bringing such a conference into being. At the same time we must recognize that when it is finally assembled Geneva will be an important achievement, but its primary significance will be procedural. Ahead of us will be complex negotiations about frontiers, commitments to peace, security arrangements, and other issues which will test the wisdom and commitment of the parties.

-5-

I am convinced that the problems that form the head-
lines of the day are soluble. In all my efforts in the
Middle East, whatever the temporary disagreements, we never
failed to develop a common position with our friends in Israel.
It was during Golda's term as Prime Minister and that of her
distinguished successor, that the steps were taken that give
us hope for even greater progress now. I have every confidence
that the present Israeli government will do no less. And
in my experience, at the end of the day, Israel has never
rejected a chance to make progress towards a settlement, or
to run risks for peace. I have no doubt that we will find a
willing -- if complicated -- partner in a dialogue that
emphasizes substance not procedure and in a quest that defines
specific objectives, not theoretical blueprints. The Jewish
people has not survived through the millenia by being found
wanting of vision in its hours of need. And the American
people have not been the hope of mankind through their history
by subordinating moral values to tactical expediency.

So let us end the controversies and turn to the future.
And Golda, whom we honor, watchful, deeply devoted, infinitely
caring, symbolizes our necessity and guarantees our opportunity.

-6-

Golda is an idealist without illusions. She believes in strength and at the same time yearns heart and soul for peace. Golda was a ferocious negotiator and a woman of powerful convictions. But, when she gave you her word, you could absolutely count on it. Once she made up her mind to do something, even if it was difficult and painful, she followed through with enormous courage and extraordinary ability. She was a true leader and a great statesman. And I am proud to say she was and remains a true friend.

Tonight it is appropriate that she is honored by the American Jewish Congress, whose very first convention, in 1918 in Philadelphia, she attended as a 20-year-old delegate from Milwaukee. No one better represents the indomitable spirit of her people. No one is so universally admired and loved. We owe it to Golda to build a world in which mothers need no longer fear for the future of their children, in which holocausts become attributes of an incomprehensible past, in which the struggles of Golda's generation will be validated by a world in which all peoples will at last live together in genuine security and turn their energies to the tasks of construction.

So you see, Golda, what you have made me do -- a long speech without the impatient interruption that would have long since been my lot in that little study in your residence where we spent so many hours that I shall always treasure.

There remains only for me to say: Golda, you have inspired us. May you live a long time, for your life is our glory.

It is a great personal honor for me to invite Golda Meir to the podium to give her this small token of our enormous affection, the Stephen Wise medallion.

The medallion reads: "Golda Meir: For a lifetime of courageous and inspiring leadership of the Jewish people."

SENATOR JAVITS, RABBI HERTZBERG, RABBI KLEIN, MAYOR BEAME, MAYOR-ELECT KOCH, SENATOR METZENBAUM, MRS. MEIR DISTINGUISHED GUESTS, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN:

WE ARE PRIVILEGED TONIGHT TO BE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN EXTRAORDINARY HUMAN BEING WHO LED HER PEOPLE WITH WISDOM AND COURAGE IN THEIR HOUR OF NEED, AND WHO LEFT HER MARK ON HISTORY. SHE ALSO LEFT SEVERAL MARKS ON ME -- I STILL HAVE THE SCARS!

I HAVE ALWAYS ADMIRED GOLDA AND LOVED HER FOR HER STRENGTH, FOR HER WISDOM AND FOR HER HUMANITY. HER LIFE IS TESTIMONY NOT ONLY OF THE HISTORY OF AN INDIVIDUAL BUT OF THE DESTINY OF A PEOPLE. IT IS MARKED BY THE FAITH THAT MADE IDEALISTS OF ORDINARY MEN AND WOMEN AND DROVE THEM TO A WASTELAND TO FULFILL A HISTORIC VISION. IT IS ETCHED WITH THE FORTITUDE OF THE SURVIVORS OF THE HOLOCAUST DETERMINED THAT NEVER AGAIN WOULD THEY SURRENDER

-2-