United States Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger arrived in Israel this evening from a brief visit to Beirut, during which he met with Lebanese leaders and lunched with U.S. marines who form part of the international force which supervised the PLO evacuation.
He was reported to have told the U.S. troops that they had accomplished their mission and should be out of the city “in a few days.” Asked whether the French and Italian troops in the inter national force would stay longer than the American. Weinberger said it was up to those two government to make a decision.
The Defense Secretary and his party flew from Beirut to Ben Gurion Airport aboard three Israel army helicopters. Weinberger was guest of honor at a reception given him by Defense Minister Ariel Sharon, his host during this two-day visit. Weinberger refused to discuss in public any aspects of the letter President Reagan sent Premier Menachem Begin.
Tomorrow, in addition to a meeting with Begin, Weinberger is due to visit the Merkava tank and Kfir jet plane production lines and other military installations. He is due to fly over the West Bank and Gaza and observe from the air tank maneuvers on the Golan Heights.
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