DIPLOMACY: Fanfare and Funds for Sadat

There were some awkward moments and some outright blunders, but even so, Egypt's President Anwar Sadat seemed to have achieved most of his goals within days of his arrival in the U.S. for a state visit last week. The White House, obviously intent on cementing its new-found friendship with Sadat, gave him the maximum treatment, including a 21-gun salute and a fanfare from 14 red-coated trumpeters. There was also the news that President Ford had asked for $750 million in economic aid to Egypt as part of a $3.4 billion Middle East aid package that went to Congress last week. This was three times what Egypt had received last year —evidently a reward for Sadat's willingness to come to an agreement with Israel on the Sinai last August. Over and above the aid, which must wait for congressional approval, the U.S. agreed to sell Egypt $98.1 million worth of much-needed wheat under favorable terms.

Warm Friendship. Although Ford had met the Egyptian leader only once before—in Salzburg last June—he greeted him with assurances of "warm personal friendship." Later there were two hour-long meetings in the Oval Office. At a state dinner Sadat—who does not dance—was whirled round by Singer Pearl Bailey as part of her act. This week Sadat will meet Ford twice more—at the Jacksonville, Fla., estate of Oil Millionaire Raymond Mason and at the White House; he will also address a joint session of Congress.

For both the U.S. and Egypt, the purpose of all the cordiality was to maintain the momentum created by the Egyptian-Israeli accords on the Sinai, in the hope that more substantive agreements may follow. The U.S. also hopes to encourage its ripening friendship with

Sadat, who has been blasting the Soviet Union since the October 1973 war for denying him new arms and meddling in the Middle East. As for Sadat, though he insisted that he had not brought a shopping list, he is known to be anxious to buy $5 billion worth of arms from the U.S. over the next five years.

Coming after two decades of severely strained U.S.-Egyptian relations, however, the new era of good will did have its bad moments. At a banquet given by Sadat at Washington's Anderson House, Ford raised his glass of sparkling Catawba juice and said, turning to Sadat, "To you, and the people you represent, the great people of the government of Israel." Amid gasps, Ford could only say lamely, "Egypt... excuse me." Later the two leaders reportedly laughed politely over the slip. Sadat's press secretary, Tahsin Bashir (see THE PRESS), cracked a barbed joke, "Perhaps President Ford is suggesting that Sadat will be President of Israel as well."