Nasser Failed To Organise Talks

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31009, 15 March 1966, Page 17

Nasser Failed To Organise Talks

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) CAIRO, March 14. President Gamal Abdel Nasser's efforts to try to organise an anti-Western summit conference in Cairo later this month have run into too many obstacles and the meeting will not beheld, says the “New York Times.”

The Egyptian Government began taking soundings about ten days ago, in the wake of the Ghanaian coup, to try to gather a group of largely Leftist leaders from Africa and Asia in Cairo to “confront the ferocious attacks being launched by Imperialist powers on liberated nations,” according to the newspaper “Al Ahram.”

Cairo, in co-operation with Jugoslavia, had undertaken “urgent and important contacts” in about 20 capitals in the hope of arranging what was called a limited non-

aligned summit meeting In late March. The proposed conference was interpreted as a potential rallying ground for AfroAsian governments sympathetic to the deposed Ghanaian President, Kwame Nkrumah. Indications were that if it were held, the conference would also have brought criticism of American involvement in Vietnam and probable attacks on the nascent Rightist grouping in the Middle East being promoted by King Feisal of Saudi Arabia. COLD WATER But almost as soon as Cairo began publicising its plan, local newspapers began saying that no conference was necessary. Informants said only eight of 20 countries had indicated willingness to attend, most of them African radicals who had walked out of a meeting of the Organisation of African Unity in Ethiopia earlier this month in protest against

the new Ghanaian Government. India, however, threw cold water on the plan and a spokesman said it was "highly unlikely” that Mrs Indira Gandhi would attend. Emperor Haile Selassi of Ethiopia, reportedly informed President Nasser that he was ready to come to a meeting on Vietnam, but not on the Ghanaian situation. Events in Indonesia cast doubt on Dr. Sukarno’s participation and the Algerian President, Mr Boumedienne, was alleged to be lukewarm at best about the idea. Diplomats have not ruled out the possibility of a small gathering of Africans radicals, including Sekou Toure, of Guinea, Keita, of Mali, Nkrumah and one or two others. But it was understood that the Egyptian authorities preferred not to hold a conference limited to a few African radicals which would leave Nasser open to accusation tjjat he was deliberately splitting the O.A.U.