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| Samuel W. Lewis, Envoy to Israel, Is Dead at 83 | |
| (2 days later) | |
| Samuel W. Lewis, a former American ambassador to Israel, whose tenure spanned the administrations of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan and the delicate negotiations between Israel and Egypt that led to the Camp David accords, died on March 10 at his home in McLean, Va. He was 83. | Samuel W. Lewis, a former American ambassador to Israel, whose tenure spanned the administrations of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan and the delicate negotiations between Israel and Egypt that led to the Camp David accords, died on March 10 at his home in McLean, Va. He was 83. |
| The cause was lung cancer, his son, Richard, said. | The cause was lung cancer, his son, Richard, said. |
| Mr. Lewis had diplomatic posts in Italy, Brazil and Afghanistan, but the highlight was his tenure in Tel Aviv, from 1977 to 1985 — an uncommonly long run for an ambassador — at a time when the Middle East was particularly volatile but also invigorated by efforts to find peace. | Mr. Lewis had diplomatic posts in Italy, Brazil and Afghanistan, but the highlight was his tenure in Tel Aviv, from 1977 to 1985 — an uncommonly long run for an ambassador — at a time when the Middle East was particularly volatile but also invigorated by efforts to find peace. |
| He was praised as a cultural and political interpreter, with a clear eye on how leaders in the region viewed potential paths to peace. At Camp David in 1978, President Carter hosted Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and President Anwar el-Sadat of Egypt in what proved a successful effort to end 30 years of war between the countries. | He was praised as a cultural and political interpreter, with a clear eye on how leaders in the region viewed potential paths to peace. At Camp David in 1978, President Carter hosted Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and President Anwar el-Sadat of Egypt in what proved a successful effort to end 30 years of war between the countries. |
| For nearly two weeks, Mr. Lewis shuttled between the leaders, listening as they talked behind each other’s backs, tamping down heated moments and privately challenging Mr. Carter at one point, when the president questioned Mr. Begin’s sincerity in seeking peace. | For nearly two weeks, Mr. Lewis shuttled between the leaders, listening as they talked behind each other’s backs, tamping down heated moments and privately challenging Mr. Carter at one point, when the president questioned Mr. Begin’s sincerity in seeking peace. |
| “I told him that he was wrong, that Begin and all Israelis wanted peace above all,” Mr. Lewis recalled in 1990 in an interview for a diplomatic oral history project. “They had been wanting nothing else for years. I told the president that the issue is not the objective but the price that the Israelis were prepared to pay, in addition to the political risks that Begin was prepared to run. Those were the problems, not whether they wanted peace. Carter mumbled and said, ‘I suppose you are right.’ ” | “I told him that he was wrong, that Begin and all Israelis wanted peace above all,” Mr. Lewis recalled in 1990 in an interview for a diplomatic oral history project. “They had been wanting nothing else for years. I told the president that the issue is not the objective but the price that the Israelis were prepared to pay, in addition to the political risks that Begin was prepared to run. Those were the problems, not whether they wanted peace. Carter mumbled and said, ‘I suppose you are right.’ ” |
| Mr. Lewis was asked to stay on after President Reagan took office in 1981. The next year, Israel angered the United States by bombing Lebanon, prompting Mr. Reagan to make a stern call to Mr. Begin, who then ordered a cease-fire. The call was widely reported by the news media. Mr. Lewis recalled in the interview that he himself had made a similar call to Mr. Begin earlier that day and had told officials in Washington about it. | |
| “Since I had already reported by secure phone the results of my early call to Begin, I’ve always been suspicious that Reagan’s subsequent call and the publicity given to its tough tone by the White House was all something of a piece of theater,” he said. | “Since I had already reported by secure phone the results of my early call to Begin, I’ve always been suspicious that Reagan’s subsequent call and the publicity given to its tough tone by the White House was all something of a piece of theater,” he said. |
| A week before the 1984 election, in which Mr. Reagan was well ahead in the polls while seeking a second term, Mr. Lewis, in a university lecture, made strikingly blunt comments about an administration initiative in the Middle East two years earlier. “The timing, in my opinion, was abysmal, the tactics of presentation worse and the outcome, so far, nil,” he said. | A week before the 1984 election, in which Mr. Reagan was well ahead in the polls while seeking a second term, Mr. Lewis, in a university lecture, made strikingly blunt comments about an administration initiative in the Middle East two years earlier. “The timing, in my opinion, was abysmal, the tactics of presentation worse and the outcome, so far, nil,” he said. |
| The next day he received a call from the White House that he described as, “to say the least, chilly.” | The next day he received a call from the White House that he described as, “to say the least, chilly.” |
| He said later that his words had been taken out of context and that he had also said complimentary things about the initiative. He added that he had hurried through his speech because he had another engagement. | |
| Six weeks after his remarks, Thomas R. Pickering was nominated to replace him in Israel. Mr. Lewis said he had already been tentatively planning to leave the post. He stepped down in May. | |
| Samuel Winfield Lewis Jr. was born on Oct. 1, 1930, in Houston, the only child of Samuel and Roselle Lewis. He went to Yale planning to become an engineer but began enrolling in history classes. Looking for a way to pursue his interest in history and politics without becoming a teacher, he took the Foreign Service exam his junior year and scored well. | Samuel Winfield Lewis Jr. was born on Oct. 1, 1930, in Houston, the only child of Samuel and Roselle Lewis. He went to Yale planning to become an engineer but began enrolling in history classes. Looking for a way to pursue his interest in history and politics without becoming a teacher, he took the Foreign Service exam his junior year and scored well. |
| After graduating in 1952, he intended to enter the military but failed the physical because of a bad knee. He enrolled in the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, where he received a master’s degree in international studies with a specialty in the Middle East in 1954. | |
| “Eventually it came in quite handy,” he said later. | “Eventually it came in quite handy,” he said later. |
| But not right away. | But not right away. |
| Soon after Mr. Lewis joined the Foreign Service in 1954, he served as consular officer in Naples, Italy. He then held positions in Florence, Italy; Washington; Rio de Janeiro; and Kabul, Afghanistan, where he was deputy chief of mission from 1971 to 1974. | Soon after Mr. Lewis joined the Foreign Service in 1954, he served as consular officer in Naples, Italy. He then held positions in Florence, Italy; Washington; Rio de Janeiro; and Kabul, Afghanistan, where he was deputy chief of mission from 1971 to 1974. |
| He returned to Washington in 1974, serving as deputy director of the State Department’s policy planning staff. In 1975 he became assistant secretary of state for International Organization Affairs. President Carter nominated him as ambassador to Israel in April 1977. | |
| Mr. Lewis was later president of the United States Institute for Peace and director of policy planning at the State Department under President Bill Clinton. Besides his son, he is survived by his wife of more than 60 years, the former Sallie Smoot, and a daughter, Grace Lewis. | Mr. Lewis was later president of the United States Institute for Peace and director of policy planning at the State Department under President Bill Clinton. Besides his son, he is survived by his wife of more than 60 years, the former Sallie Smoot, and a daughter, Grace Lewis. |
| Seven years after Mr. Begin and Mr. Sadat signed their peace treaty, and after he had left Tel Aviv, Mr. Lewis described it as imperfect but crucial. | Seven years after Mr. Begin and Mr. Sadat signed their peace treaty, and after he had left Tel Aviv, Mr. Lewis described it as imperfect but crucial. |
| “Nevertheless, the peace stands intact after seven blustery years,” he wrote in The New York Times in 1986. “It survived a vicious war in Lebanon and the Israeli occupation of a great Arab capital. It withstands the strain of an unresolved border dispute over Taba, on the Red Sea, and endures Syrian and Libyan efforts to undermine it. It is not what was once dreamed of, but it is peace — real peace, buttressed by United States support for both nations.” | “Nevertheless, the peace stands intact after seven blustery years,” he wrote in The New York Times in 1986. “It survived a vicious war in Lebanon and the Israeli occupation of a great Arab capital. It withstands the strain of an unresolved border dispute over Taba, on the Red Sea, and endures Syrian and Libyan efforts to undermine it. It is not what was once dreamed of, but it is peace — real peace, buttressed by United States support for both nations.” |