The Council re-caps the current situation in the Middle East and discusses US options to improve the American position in the Middle East and work for an Arab-Israeli settlement.

Saunders gives the pros and cons of Sisco proceeding with a meeting he plans to have with Dobrynin to discuss their working paper. Saunders believes that Moscow is unlikely to accept this move as a concession, and that a settlement is the American's main chance to turn the tide in favor of them in the Middle East.

The National Security Council discusses US considerations of Middle East negotiations, including the Soviet role in the Middle East and their positions on negotiations, repatriation and settlement, and the possibility of negotiating small pieces of an agreement as opposed to direct negotiations.

The paper provides an overview of American policy in the Middle East, including main interests and their importance, the Soviet Union's influence in the Middle East, and threats to NATO.

Kissinger provides Nixon with an overview of achieving a general political settlement in the Arab-Israeli conflict, and different international frameworks for this goal.