Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin flew unexpectedly to Germany this week, prompting speculation there were new developments in the case of missing Israeli airman Ron Arad.
But officials at the Prime Minister’s Office denied the speculation, saying Rabin flew to Germany on Wednesday for talks with the Chancellor Helmut Kohl about the peace process and about Israel’s ties with the European Union.
Rabin’s office said that although the trip had been planned during the past two days, it was announced only an hour before his departure.
A statement from the office said there would be an “unofficial exchange of information,” and that the two leaders would “coordinate on political issues of interest to both countries.”
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres also dismissed speculation that the trip had anything to do with recent reports that Germany was negotiating with Iran for Arad’s release.
“There is a set of important subjects between us and Germany and between us and the European community,” Peres said. “I wouldn’t suggest to attach this meeting with anything concerning Ron Arad.”
Arad bailed out from a fighter plane over Lebanon in 1986 and was believed to have been held by pro-Iranian troops in Lebanon.
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