On 11 March Mr. Shamir met in Brussels with EEC Commissioner Claude Cheysson, with Belgium's Foreign Minister Tindemans and with the Secretary General of NA TO, Lord Carrington. From Belgium he continued for talks in Ottawa with Prime Minister Mulroony and Foreign Minister Clark. During that week, President Mubarak was on a visit to Washington. Reports out of that capital indicated that the U.S. was considering various options following the Mubarak initiative. Mr. Shamir was asked upon his return from Canada if he favoured Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. He rejected such an idea. Text of his airport remark follow:
Q: Is last night's report from Washington concerning the possibility of talks between Israel and the Palestinians acceptable to us?
A: I only heard about this in the past few hours; we have no confirmation of this report. I hope that it is incorrect, and I want it to be incorrect, and this should answer your question.
Q: What is our stand on this matter?
A: We oppose any meeting between the U.S. and the PLO.
Q: Another meeting that took place in the region was that between Mubarak, the Egyptian president, Hussein, and Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi ruler. Does this meeting have any significance for Israel?
A: Naturally, everything that occurs in the region interests Israel, but meetings between various Arab leaders do not mean the advancement of peace with Israel. Only talks with Israel can have any significance regarding the peace process with Israel.
Q: Regarding the withdrawal from Lebanon - the prime minister said in an interview that the withdrawal to the international border can be expected within 8-10 weeks. Is this acceptable to you?
A: I don't know what the Cabinet's decision was, or what the Ministerial Defense Committee's decision was in this regard; I will be updated today and then I will be able to formulate my position.