Israel’s Peres Refuses Details on Iran Arms
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres today declined to tell legislators whether Israel was involved in U.S. arms shipments to Iran but said Israel has no policy to supply arms to Tehran.
Shortly after Peres refused to confirm or deny a reported Israeli role in the “arms-for-hostages deal,” two small opposition parties dropped plans to put the government to a vote of confidence Tuesday over its policy of secrecy.
Appearing before a closed session of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee of the Knesset, or parliament, Peres said he would only discuss specifics of any weapons supplied by Israel with the panel’s own subcommittee.
“Israel has no will, desire or capability to decide the fate of the (Iran-Iraq) war,” sources in the Foreign Ministry quoted Peres as telling the committee. “Israel has no policy to supply arms to Iran.”
The government has refused to allow a Knesset debate or to give details to the full committee on the grounds that arms sales are a matter of national security.
Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, after objections to the blackout arose, last week promised committee chairman Abba Eban that he would supply details of arms supplies but only to the subcommittee, officials said.
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