MIDDLE EAST: A Touch of Gloom, a Hint of Peace

Until last week, Henry Kissinger had insisted that he would not undertake a trip to the Middle East unless he had a reasonably good chance of bringing back a firm agreement. But as the U.S. Secretary of State prepared for another round of his shuttle diplomacy —with visits to Jerusalem, Cairo, Amman, Damascus and Riyadh beginning next week—he changed the rules. He was off on no more than "an exploratory trip" at the request of Egypt and Israel, Kissinger said, and then only because of "the urgency of the situation." Kissinger's hedging—he...