‘New’ Gulf Peace Plan Isn’t, White House Says

WASHINGTON —  The White House today appeared to back away from a joint U.S.-Soviet Gulf War peace plan issued by Secretary of State James A. Baker III and Soviet Foreign Minister Alexander A. Bessmertnykh, calling it “regrettable” and “misinterpreted.”

White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said that there has been no change in U.S. policy and that President Bush had not seen the proposal before it was issued late Tuesday.

“If there is anybody that has any concerns, we certainly will offer explanations because we are anxious that no one think that we are altering policy in any way,” Fitzwater told reporters.

Bush and Baker, asked at the start of an Oval Office meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Antonis Samaras whether the President was angry with the secretary of state, denied any differences.

“There are no differences,” Bush said.

“He’s never been mad at me,” Baker said of the President.

The statement, issued shortly before Bush predicted military defeat for Iraq in his State of the Union message to Congress, offered Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein another chance to end the war by withdrawing from Kuwait and also pledging to work for a comprehensive Middle East peace once the conflict is over.

Reacting to the statement, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir today accused the United States of ignoring Israel in discussions with the Soviet Union.

“I would say that we find fault in this in that a political action was taken here that touches us, our fate, our future, without consulting us, without telling us first that they are going to do it,” Shamir said.