India wants Israel to quit occupied areas: from the Archives, October 11, 1973

New York, Oct. 10: Mr. Samar Sen, India’s Permanent Representative at the U.N., yesterday gave strong support to the Arab countries in the Security Council and insisted that if peace was to return to West Asia, “Israel must withdraw from the territories occupied by its forces as a result of the June 1967 war.” “Unless this basic principle is accepted by the Council as a whole,” he said, “it will be both unfair and unjust for the Council to ask for a ceasefire, which will leave vast territories of Egypt, Jordan and Syria in the illegal occupation of Israel.” “We, like all other delegations, would like to see the present hostilities cease, but they can cease only when withdrawal of Israeli forces has been accepted by Israel and in practice begun.” In a pointed reference to the U.S. Ambassador’s statement on Monday that the parties concerned should return to “the position before the hostilities broke out,” Mr. Sen said, “We agree with the statement, but since the hostilities broke out on June 6, 1967, the parties concerned should return to the line that separated them on that date.” (The U.S. representative had October 6, 1973, the date of current hostilities in mind, when he made the statement and Egypt turned it down instantaneously.) Mr. Sen’s statement is in line with the Egyptian demand.  Mr. Sen also said in the event of failure by the Security Council to come to a satisfactory decision, world opinion would not be more disappointed than if the Council had not debated the problem formally and openly.