No Proof for U.S. Charge Against Libya, Soviets Say

Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard A. Shevardnadze today said that documents Secretary of State George P. Shultz showed him during a chemical warfare conference did not prove Libya is building a chemical weapons plant.

Shevardnadze said he urged Shultz during a meeting Sunday to try to reduce tensions in the Mediterranean after the U.S. downing of two Libyan MIG-23 jet fighters last Wednesday.

The conference, which opened Saturday, has touched on a wide range of issues--the most dramatic of which was an announcement by Shevardnadze on Sunday that the Soviet Union would begin destroying its chemical weapons stockpile this year.

Shevardnadze told reporters at Orly Airport today that Shultz had shown him plans of a factory in Rabta, 35 miles southwest of the Libyan capital of Tripoli, that U.S. officials say is being built to produce chemical weapons.

“The secretary of state showed me the construction plans but that proves nothing,” Shevardnadze said.

“I told him that this was a serious accusation and that it has to be proven. I also said that the most important thing is to stabilize the situation after the incident with the airplanes.”