ABSTRACT
The idea of a cease-fire hung expectantly in the air in the early months of 1970. After Israel’s and Egypt’s rejection of Bill Rogers’ proposals, and after Israel’s deep-penetration raids and Moscow’s intervention, it seemed the only way to prevent the battle along the Suez Canal line from careening out of control. The United States, Sisco said, continued to think that the Rogers plan met the legitimate concerns of both the Arabs and Israel. In Israel, Nutting Nasser’s reply was awaited with keen interest. Curiosity grew as his visit to Moscow extended well beyond the date originally announced for it. But the view that the Israeli media conveyed to the public was that the Egyptians and the Soviets would come up with some sort of conditional acceptance of the American proposal. In Washington, the Israeli government’s decision was greeted with almost delirious enthusiasm.
