"After four wars during 30 years, despite intensive human efforts, the Middle East, which is the cradle of civilization and the birthplace of three great religions, does not enjoy the blessings of peace."

-- from the preamble to the 1978 Camp David Accords

Nearly a quarter-century after Jimmy Carter's Camp David meetings with Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian prime minister Anwar Sadat, peace in the Middle East remains a distant dream.

Yet Camp David was a landmark event. Carter's unprecedented efforts brought Arabs and Jews together, establishing a framework for peace. Historian Betty Glad considers Camp David Carter's greatest legacy. How did the president accomplish so much in just thirteen days?

Arrival
September 5, 1978 (Day 1)
Three leaders of nations would be isolated from the outside world. An intensely personal effort would be required of us. I had to understand these men! President Jimmy Carter

It was soon to be obvious that Sadat seemed to trust me too much, and Begin not enough... [Sadat] emphasized that he was eager to conclude a total settlement of the issues, and not merely establish procedures for future negotiations... Sadat stated that... he had a comprehensive settlement plan "here in my back pocket." Carter

The president described Begin as rigid, unimaginative, preoccupied with the meaning of words, and unwilling to look at the subject in a broader perspective. He sounded really discouraged. He kept shaking his head and expressing his disappointment. U.S. National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski

Jimmy and Rosalynn biking
The Carters biked around Camp David on the first day of the meetings, meeting all the participants. The cottages of Camp David are clustered near each other, accessible by road or trails.

It's an easy stroll from the helipad to the Aspen Lodge where Carter was staying. Sadat stayed in the Dogwood Lodge and Begin in the Birch Lodge, about 100 yards apart.

First Meeting
September 6, 1978 (Day 2)
[After Sadat's opening proposal], no one spoke for a while, and I tried to break the tension by telling Begin that if he would sign the document as written, it would save all of us a lot of time. Carter

There were times when only by clenching teeth and fists could I stop myself from exploding. No one disputed Begin's right... to be the final and authorized arbiter of Israel's position on all matters under review. But none of us was disposed to accept, as though they were Sinai tablets, those of his views which seemed to us extreme and unreasonable. Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan

Sadat wanted to make Egypt's decisions himself, did not like to have aides present when he was with me... In contrast, Begin relied very heavily on his aides and advisers. I was soon to be thankful that each of these men had developed his own style, because in Sadat's case, the leader was much more forthcoming than his chief advisers, and in Begin's case, the advisers were more inclined to work out difficult problems than was their leader. Carter

The spirit of Camp David
President Franklin D. Roosevelt established Camp David, calling it 'Shangri-La' after a mythical paradise. Winston Churchill and Roosevelt plotted the Normandy invasion there. Over the years, other leaders have used the retreat as a place to negotiate peace.

Presidents Dwight Eisenhower held a Camp David summit with Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev during the Cold War. President Bill Clinton brought Middle Eastern leaders Ehud Barak and Yassir Arafat together there in 2000 in another bid for peace.

Heated Exchange
September 8, 1978 (Day 4)
[Begin] took [Sadat's proposal] clause by clause and explained why it was unacceptable. ...for example, [one clause implied] the establishment of a Palestinian state, when both Sadat and Carter had frequently stated to us that they were opposed to it. Sadat replied that this was so, but such a state would be demilitarized; and it would not be independent, but linked to Jordan. Dayan

Sadat's demands to be compensated for damages his country had suffered in the various wars was the last straw for Begin. "What chutzpah! What impertinence!" Begin growled. Israeli Defense Minister Ezer Weizman

Sadat's wife, Jehan, recalled in her memoirs that she encouraged Sadat to keep negotiating with Begin. "...you understand him, Anwar," she said. "You must keep trying." "I am trying and trying, Jehan," he replied. "But it is discouraging."

Early Saturday morning, September 9... after considering the lack of progress... [we] concluded that the time had come to turn to an American negotiating text. It was decided that by Sunday, when work was resumed after the Israeli Sabbath, an American draft of a peace framework should be ready... Secretary of State Cyrus Vance

Relaxation
Camp David offered a bounty of natural riches. Jimmy Carter often hiked through the woods to clear his mind. Sadat began each day with a walk, and Carter joined him on one of those mornings. When visiting Camp David for vacation, Carter enjoyed fly-fishing in nearby streams and lakes.

The retreat had a theater, a swimming pool, tennis courts, skeet shooting, archery targets, shuffleboard, a bowling alley, a trampoline and a par-three golf course.

Sabbath
September 9, 1978 (Day 5)
In the course of the discussion, Carter said that he intended to bring up the issue of the national rights of the Palestinians, including the right to self-determination. "Out of the question!" Begin replied. He was afraid that such a discussion might open up the possibility in the distant future of a Palestinian state. Weizman

The challenge... was to marry... conflicting objectives, building on two initiatives -- Sadat's Jerusalem initiative and Begin's self-rule proposal. ...We sought to press Begin to go as far as he could go in accepting the general principles of withdrawal... and the pursuit of a comprehensive peace. ...[and] we attempted to transform Begin's self-rule plan into a serious arrangement for "full autonomy" -- Begin's own words... -- for the Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza and to provide a mechanism for the ultimate resolution of the final status of the West Bank and Gaza by the end of the five-year transitional period. ...We prepared an American working draft and presented it to both sides as the basis for further negotiations. Vance

Religious observance
In 1977 Carter established a chapel in the Hickory Lodge, installing a military field altar and hymnals supplied by the Post Chaplain at nearby Fort Ritchie. Christian services were conducted on Sundays.

Sadat, a Muslim, worshipped five times a day, with special prayers on Fridays.

Begin requested that no work be conducted on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath. When the talks stretched to include a second Saturday, work did not stop for the Sabbath.

Far Apart
September 10-14, 1978 (Days 6-10)
The American proposal was seventeen pages of high explosive. In an attempt to manipulate the discussion, the Americans circumvented controversial issues like the fate of the Sinai settlements and airfields; at the same time, they added a whole series of worrisome conditions relating to Judea, Samaria, and the Gaza Strip. The blood drained from Begin's face as his eyes flickered slowly down the various sections of the American paper... Weizman

...Carter declared that Sadat would not make concessions with regard to Israeli settlements and airfields in the Sinai, and therefore Israel should evacuate them. Weizman

At one point...[Begin] exclaimed: "My right eye will fall out, my right hand will fall off before I ever agree to the dismantling of a single Jewish settlement." Brzezinski

Most of our meetings with the Americans took place at night, and at times went on to the early hours of the morning. Dayan

Press blackout
Jimmy Carter leveraged Camp David's isolation to limit the press coverage of the talks. Press Secretary Jody Powell and Communications Director Gerald Rafshoon advised Carter against closing off the press, but he steadfastly refused. Carter felt press coverage was irrelevant to the participants' goal of understanding and resolution, and he didn't want any intermediate stage of the malleable process to be reported as fixed.

Marathon Negotiations
September 10-14, 1978 (Days 6-10)
After Begin outlined all of the controls, veto rights and privileges that he would retain for Israel while giving the Arabs a form of self-rule, Carter exploded, "What you want to do is make the West Bank part of Israel... no self-respecting Arab would accept this." Brzezinski

...it was interesting to note that Weizman first and then Dayan would speak to Begin in Hebrew, and judging from the tone of their remarks, they were inclined either to tone Begin's obduracy down or to actually argue with him. Later on they began to do so also in English. Brzezinski

...the President... spent the afternoon drafting his own wording for the Sinai agreement. It is a remarkably well-prepared statement, which the Egyptians... immediately accepted. Perhaps word of this has gotten to the Israelis somehow, because Begin has requested a private meeting with the President tonight, which he has in advance described as the most important and difficult meeting of his life. Brzezinski

An informal approach
Carter strove for an informal atmosphere at Camp David. All three of the leaders' wives were invited to the retreat, "to defuse the tension and make them more reasonable," as Jehan Sadat said. She was the only one who did not go; she was planning her son's wedding.

Carter also decided not to adhere to a rigid schedule of meetings, preferring to let the negotiations proceed on their own timetable.

Breakdown
September 15, 1978 (Day 11)
...[Sadat] was clearly deeply troubled, and not his warm and emphatic self. He... told me he had decided he must go home, as there was no hope that we could achieve an agreement. I struggled to persuade him to stay... Vance

"My bags are packed and we have called for a helicopter to take us to the airport in Washington," [Sadat said]. "Does President Carter know this?" "Yes. He has asked to meet with me privately, but I see no reason to." "Anwar, you gave President Carter your word that you would do everything you could to bring peace. Now you are walking out. He is a man of morals and principles. And so are you. You cannot do that to him." Egyptian First Lady Jehan Sadat

I explained to him... that his action would harm the relationship between Egypt and the United States, he would be violating his personal promise to me, and the onus for failure would be on him. I described the possible future progress of Egypt's friendships and alliances -- from us to the moderate then radical Arabs, thence to the Soviet Union. Carter

Isolation
Camp David is situated in the Catoctin Mountains in Maryland, approximately 65 miles northwest of Washington D.C. The site was originally developed by the Works Project Administration and opened in 1938 as a camp for federal government employees and families. It is a twenty-minute helicopter ride from the White House.

The site's seclusion is reinforced by an electrified fence and two barbed-wire security fences. U.S. Marines patrol the area.

Agreement
September 17, 1978 (Day 13)
[The president] is driving himself mercilessly, spending most of his time either debating with the Egyptians or the Israelis or drafting and revising texts that are being submitted to him. He has single-handedly written the proposed document for the Sinai formula. Brzezinski

...No paragraph on Jerusalem could be drafted that would satisfy both Sadat and... Begin... we decided to drop reference to the city from the comprehensive peace accord. Instead, we suggested that each party simply state its own national position on Jerusalem in side letters. Vance

After a protracted and heated argument, in which Begin shouted, "ultimatum," "excessive demands," and "political suicide," he finally agreed to ask the Knesset [Israeli parliament] within two weeks to agree to remove Israeli settlements from the Sinai, provided that agreement was reached on all other Sinai issues. Brzezinski

I checked the Israeli language most carefully. It was a very confusing point and all of us were dead tired. Momentarily, my mind seemed to clear and I thought of a way to phrase all three final letters that would be satisfactory to both Begin and Sadat... Only then did I fully realize we had succeeded. Carter

Seed of the Carter Center
The success of the Camp David Accords influenced Carter's decision to establish the Carter Center, rather than just a presidential library. He envisioned a peaceful location to bring adversaries together to find common ground. Today, the Atlanta-based Carter Center monitors elections worldwide, sponsors conflict resolution, and combats disease in some of the world's poorest places.