Nation: The Final, Extra Mile

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WELCOME KARTER read one of the hand-painted signs that were held above the cheering crowd lining the streets of Cairo. Some of the others called him Kartir, Caytar, and Cahtah. Many of them said PEACE, and some said, in honor of his own faith, WE BELIEVE IN GOD. And in Jerusalem it was much the same: WELCOME, SHALOM, and PEACE.

Jimmy Carter's bold flight to the Middle East last week was one of the most startling and swiftly executed diplomatic initiatives in years. Just 72 hours after he telephoned Egyptian President Anwar Sadat to invite himself to Cairo, Carter was on the banks of the Nile. It was a daring attempt to use the prestige of the U.S. presidency to end the months-long stalemate blocking an Egyptian-Israeli peace settlement. Even though the search for a Middle East ac cord has claimed more of the President's time than any other issue, last week's jour ney, in the words of Presidential Assistant Hamilton Jordan, demonstrated Carter's willingness to go "the final, extra mile." The goal, of course, was momentous: an end to more than 30 years of warfare that repeatedly threatened to draw the American and Soviet super powers into a clash.

But as Carter flew off from Andrews Air Force Base, after a surprisingly successful White House meeting with Israeli Premier Menachem Begin, he had no advance assurance that his trip would not lead to an embarrassing failure. It thus entailed major political risks, both for the nations involved and for Carter personally. If he had to return home without having brought Cairo and Jerusalem substantially closer to agreement, he could be criticized for unwisely raising expectations, for wasting U.S. influence, and for improvising showy moves without any serious plan behind them. Said a Washington-based European diplomat: "It is extremely risky; to Europeans it seems even a little bit crazy. There is no fallback position if this fails." While White House Press Secretary Jody Powell agreed that there was "no guarantee of success," he stressed that "without a major effort such as this, the prospects for failure are almost overwhelming." If the U.S. permitted such a failure, added a formal White House statement, "the judgment of history and of our children will rightly condemn us."

By Sunday night, after 6½ hours of talks in Jerusalem with Begin and senior members of his cabinet, the payoff on Carter's gamble was still in doubt. "A treaty is within our grasp," the President had told Egypt's parliament Saturday. Sadat agreed, saying that "we have had a very fruitful talk." But both leaders cautioned that some issues remained unresolved as Carter headed for Israel. Arriving there just as the Jewish Sabbath was ending, he was greeted at Ben-Gurion Airport by President Itzhak Navon and Premier Begin, who gave him a warm embrace. Said Carter: "I have good reason to hope that the goal can now be reached. I look forward to completing the urgent business at hand on this brief visit." The carefully chosen words were more optimistic, however, than the actual situation. Carter let it be known that he was willing to delay his return home for a day or two, and that Secretary of State Cyrus Vance planned to remain in the Middle East still longer.

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