ABSTRACT
In Rey's speech to the European Parliament, he stated that the new Israeli proposal obligated the governments of The Six to alter their outlook. Seeking to impel the Europeans to accept their requests, the Israelis threatened that if their proposal was not adopted as one bloc, they would have no choice but to return to their previous demand for a preferential and comprehensive agreement. Among the problems in reaching an arrangement with the Italian government on the orange issue was the status of Sicily, an autonomous Italian region with its own Ministry of Agriculture. This necessitated that Israel conduct talks simultaneously with the Ministry of Agriculture in Rome and that in Palermo. The unambiguous Israeli opposition was effective: Bonn ordered its representatives in the joint delegation to declare that a misunderstanding had arisen and remove their proposal from the agenda.
