ABSTRACT
The military annex of the Camp David accords detailed the phases of withdrawal from Sinai, the future deployment of both armies, the security arrangements, and the machinery for supervising the faithful implementation of its provisions and assessing possible infractions by the parties. Indeed, it was the only document that was drafted in the clearest possible language and did not leave any leeway for interpretations and haggling in the implementation phase. The drafting process was meticulous and the wording absolutely clear and unambiguous. The negotiators dug deep into the substance of the: matter, covered the smallest detail and consistently avoided haziness and double meanings. They did not strive to bridge unbridgeable differences by sophisticated diplomatic wording and did not leave to the future possible clashes of interpretation. On the contrary, the annex was drafted in the clearest language and the various paragraphs were purposely inter-linked like the rings of a single chain in a manner that ensured the faithful enforcement of all the provisions by both sides. The implementation of a given commitment by one of the parties depended on the other side's implementing his commitments in a previous phase of the process and so on — from one ring of the chain to the other. The breaking of one of the rings would have resulted in the disintegration of the whole chain. In less picturesque language, evading the enforcement of one of the provisions by Egypt would have automatically entailed the cancellation of the Israeli withdrawal, in its first or second phase, and even more drastic counter-measures. Furthermore, it was implicit that any major infraction by Egypt would lead to the discontinuation of US military assistance to Egypt, thus impeding the quick rehabilitation of the Egyptian army which had been badly damaged by the Yom Kippur War.
