Personal Representative of the President to the Middle East Peace Negotiations Remarks Announcing Ambassador Robert S. Strauss' Role in the Negotiations.

THE PRESIDENT. There are too few times in life when one not only enjoys the company and friendship of another man 'but also admires and appreciates his abilities and his talents as a working partner. That's the feeling that I have about Bob Strauss.

Bob agreed reluctantly to come into government and to serve in my administration, in the Cabinet as a Special Trade Representative. He's done a magnificent job negotiating on behalf of our country. And we hope to have action on the Multilateral Trade Negotiations before the summer congressional recess.

After congressional action on MTN is completed, Bob had planned to leave government and to return to private life. However, I am proud to announce today that Secretary Vance and I have prevailed on Bob Strauss to remain in government in the special and unique role as Ambassador at Large, responsible for our country's participation in the crucial, upcoming Middle East peace talks.

By accepting this difficult but very important challenge, Bob Strauss will be relieving Secretary Vance and me of our time-consuming and heavy personal role in the peace talks, which we have experienced over the past 2 years.

Although the Egypt-Israeli peace treaty stands as a demonstration of the ability of leaders and people to rise above the conflicts and hostility of the past, it is more than a monument to past efforts; it's a promise for a comprehensive peace in the Middle East in the future. That promise must be kept.

Next month, negotiations will begin on the complex issues involving the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. I have personally promised President Sadat and Prime Minister Begin that the United States will contribute our good offices to see that those negotiations are as successful as those which resulted in the treaty which was signed between Israel and Egypt last month.

No one believes that the road to peace in the future will be any less arduous than the path which we have already followed. But we've learned that perseverance, patience, faith, and trust can overcome what appear to be impossible obstacles. Those are the objectives which guided me and the Secretary of State in choosing a distinguished American to be the personal representative of our Nation during the next phase of negotiations.

Secretary Vance and I welcome Bob Strauss in this effort as a partner, as do President Sadat and Prime Minister Begin, with whom I spoke today. Their response was positive and enthusiastic. I'm sure that Bob Strauss' special friendship and relationship with me and Secretary Vance and his close relationship with the Members of the Congress, his knowledge of our Nation, his close relationship with leaders in both parties will give him the support and strength that he will need to undertake and to successfully complete this very important assignment on behalf of our country and on behalf of world peace.

SECRETARY OF STATE VANCE. Our country and all of us are fortunate indeed that Bob Strauss has agreed to take on this new and terribly important responsibility. There is nobody that I know of who is better qualified than Bob Strauss to take on the complex and difficult negotiations that lie before us. And all of us know that he will handle his new responsibilities in this area with the distinction that Bob has always shown in every job that he's taken on.

So, I personally want to say from the bottom of my heart how thankful I am to Bob for what he is doing and how grateful all of our country is to him for being willing to do this.

Thank you, Bob.

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I usually have something glib to say when I come before this group, but I don't today.

I suspect that of all the tasks I've undertaken since I became an adult, this is far the most complex and certainly the most difficult and the one that offers the greatest rewards. I told Helen last evening that from time to time I wonder why I had done this or that or the other in business or in law or in banking or in politics and in government, but I'm reasonably well convinced that it was all just in training for this assignment, an assignment that's been carried so far by President Carter, Secretary Vance, two courageous leaders in the Middle East, President Sadat and Prime Minister Begin.

And I want to assure each of you, assure the President and the Secretary of State, and assure those of the American public who hear and see this broadcast, that whatever energies, whatever talent, and whatever background and experience I have, I shall apply with all the vigor and all the dedication that you would want.

Thank you very much.

THE PRESIDENT. Thank you very much.

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. Jody, any questions? I'll take a few questions, yes.

Q. Could I ask you whether you had to consider your own religious origin as a possible obstacle?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. I never considered my own religious origin as an obstacle to anything, not in this or anything else rye ever done.

Next question?

Q. Mr. Ambassador, knowing your desire to get out of government and back to Dallas, are we to take this appointment as an indication that you are going to expeditiously finish this new job?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. Now we can begin to be smart with each other again.

[Laughter]

Of course I'm not going to expeditiously finish this new job. And it's with considerable hesitation and reluctance that I undertook the job. I must say that as much concern as I had about undertaking the job, Helen had even more concern about my having more leisure time to spend at home.

Q. When do you expect to go out to the Middle East and to get started on this?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. I just returned from the Middle East on Saturday night. We spent several days out there on an economic mission.

I would hope that we will complete the trade legislation before the summer recess, and I think we will, with the cooperation of Congress. We've had great bipartisan support there, Republicans and Democrats alike. If that continues, we'll complete that legislation, that legislative process, and shortly thereafter, I'll be thinking about going to the Middle East.

In the meantime, I've got a great deal to learn and a good deal of intensive briefing to go through.

Q. Does that mean, sir, that you will not get directly involved in the negotiations when they begin within the next few weeks, because you'll be busy with the trade, still?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. It's my understanding that the parties themselves feel that the negotiations will commence at a deputies level, if you will, and proceed at that level for a period of months, or "a period of time" might be better.

So, it fits in rather well with my schedule. And I would expect to be following them carefully, to be, as I say, informing myself. I have a lot of learning to do. But the time schedule works out rather well if I can complete my trade negotiations. I've got a lot to do, yes.

Q. You don't see a dual role, though, for the time being? You will finish one and then start the other?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. I do not see a dual role, no. Yes, final question.

Q. When did you first get word or an idea that the President had you in mind for this?

AMBASSADOR STRAUSS. Oh, I think it was about 2 weeks ago the President asked me to the office. And we spent about an hour going over it, and my initial reaction, of course, negative. But he explained it very carefully as we spent that hour, and I left with more positive thrust.

Thank you very much. I look forward to discussing this with each of you in the future on a personal basis.