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The Palestinian problem could be settled by adopting 1) King Hussein's proposal that the West Bank be turned into a semiautonomous region federated with Jordan; or 2) Tunisian President Habib Bourguiba's plan for turning Jordan and the West Bank into one country, "Palestine," and making it a homeland for Palestinian refugees, who already constitute a majority of the region's population. Such a settlement would now seem to be unacceptable to both sides, but in the aftermath of repeated wars, one or the other may have to do some hard rethinking.
Nobody in Washington was proposing terms to the Israelis—let alone the Arabs —-last week. Instead, Kissinger put in 20-hour work days, mostly on the telephone, trying to enlist the support of other countries in working out a ceasefire. The U.S. called for the U.N. Security Council to convene, but Kissinger was unable to build a consensus among the permanent members of the Council—or the warring parties—for a resolution aimed at stopping the fighting. As the week passed without significant progress, Kissinger was obliged to cancel a quick trip to London and Bonn; like détente, "the Year of Europe" remains one of his highest priorities, but for the moment it will have to wait.