ISRAELIS' ACCOUNT ON ARMS: HOW U.S. SET UP THE DEALS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000403730010-7
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 9, 2012
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: December 11, 1986
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/03/09: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403730010-7
ANTIC" AV tt u NEW YORK TIMES
ON PAGE
11 December 1986
Israelis"Account on Amu:
quietly divulging to the Israeli press
their inside account of the Iran affair
- a version they say details precisely,
how the United States Government,
"with the knowledge and approval" of
President Reagan, used Israel to ex-
change arms for hostages with Iran.
Senior Israeli officials say they are
growing tired of being referred to by
American officials as "the third coun-
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
Special to The New York Times
JERUSALEM, DEC: Tff--1n the last According to the most detailed ac An Exchange, With Conditions
few days, Israeli officials have been I ,v,hlichM nuar eavaral daua in
How U.S. Set Un the Deals
nating the President and his senior
aides or in clouding the atmosphere in
the excellent relations between the two
countries."
Deep down, Mr. Marcus added, the
Reagan Administration officials "may
have hoped that Israel would take the
blame."
He continued: "Our political leader-
ship is unwilling to fulfill this role. A
reconstrution of the facts shows that
the episode is an American ballgame
from beginning to end."
Mr. Marcus went on: "We still have
some bullets in the gun. If they push Is-
rael more, I won't be surprised if offi-
cials here use them."
Instead of publicly issuing a state-
ment outlining Israel's role in the Iran
affair, which might formally contra-
dict the American versions and possi-
bly complicate relations with Washing-
ton, I
senior Israeli officials have leaked
the basic details to Israeli newspapers.
try" that helped Washington in the af-
fair, as if Israel had done something so
sinister it would be improper to refer to
it by name.
"if they've got something to say
against us, then why don't they say it
straight out," a senior Israeli official
said. "Otherwise, please leave us alone.
We are not going to be the scapegoats."
Up until now, the Israeli Government
has declined to give any official version;
of its dealings with Washington on the
Iran affair, other than to say that it
acted at the request of the United i
States and knew nothing about funds'
being transferred to the Nicraguan
rebels known as contras.
Avoiding Harm to President
"Why do we still keep silent?" Yoe]
Marcus, a political reporter for the
daily newspaper Haaretz, wrote in a
lengthy reconstruction of the Iran af-
fair based on Israeli sources. "The an-
swer being whispered in Jerusalem is
that Israel is not interested in incrimi-
It is impossible to confirm the Israeli
version independently. Though it is
self-serving, it is not inconsistent with
many of the facts that have emerged
from Washington.
Haaretz - a version senior Israeli offi-
cials confirm is "authoritative" - the
affair developed through stages.
First, the Haaretz account said, "The
affair was born in a conversation
which took place in Jerusalem in
March 1985 between then Prime Minis-
ter Shimon Peres and the American
Miche deep a lawyer and former
member o ational Security Coun-
cil."
At the meeting, the newspaper said,
behalf of Robert C. McFarlane, who ket," Haaretz said.
was the national security advisor: After much back and forth, Mr.
Could Israel establish contacts to se- Ghorbanifar demanded 500 TOW anti-
cure an American foothold in post-Kho- tank missiles. At this point, Defense
meini Iran? And could Israel help with
the release of hostages?
"Peres viewed this as a White House
approach that demanded an answer,"
the account said. "There should there-
fore be no doubt who first proposed
what to whom."
Second, after hearing from Mr. Le-
deen, Mr. Peres, still in March 1985
told his informal adviser and old
friend, Al Schwimmer, the founding
president of Israel Aircraft Industries,
that the Americana had asked him to
help free their hostages, particularly,
Haaretz said, Vj I n Bum, whb
was the station chief for the central In-
telligence Agency in Beirut. Mr.,
Schwimmer suggested making use of
Yaacov Nlmrodi, an Israeli arms
dealer who had been a military attache
in Teheran.
It was Mr. Schwimmer, the newspa-
'per said, "who came up with the idea of
'arms for Buckley.'"
The Haaretz account contains fac-
tual errors and appears to be sharply
at odds with the version related by
American officials. Mr. Ledeen, who is
not a lawyer, was never a member of
the National Security Council staff, but
was a consultant. In addition, Amer-
ican officials have said his meeting
with Mr. Peres took place in May or
June.
Finally, these officials said the con-
versation involved an opening to Iran,
and did not include any mention of the
hostages. The twist on the Haaretz ac-
count is important because it makes it
appear that Washington was solely re-
sponsible for raising the idea of trading
arms for hostages.
Mr. Ledeen would not comment on
the details of the Israeli account, say-
ing only that it was "total nonsense."
According to the Haaretz account,
Mr. Nimrodi, apparently with the help
of the Saudi arms dealer Adrian M.
Khashoggi, made contact with Ma=
nucher Ghorbanifar. He was an Iranian
exile who had been an officer of the
Shah's Savak secret police, "who sells
everything from carpets to missiles,"
and who had close contacts with the
ruling Mullahs in Iran. Haaretz said.
Mr. Ghorbanifar actually came to Is-
Minister Yitzhak Rabin was brought
into the picture, Haaretz said, and he.
objected to such a large shipment. Mr.
Nimrodi suggested they begin the deal
with an "advance of 100 missiles, and
then see the reaction," Haaretz said
Mr. Rabin said he would consider the
arms-for-Buckley trade under two,
conditions: that the payment - $3.5
million - be made in advance and that
Mr. McFarlane write and sign a letter
stating that the deal was -being done
with his concurrence and that the
United states would resupply Israel fqt
the shipped missiles, Haaretz said
In the late summer of 1985, David::
Kimche, then the director-general of
the Israeli Foreign Ministry, was sent
to Washington to obtain such approval.
He did not get the letter Mr. Rabin
wanted, but rather a verbal green light,
Haaretz said.
The New Yci t T,molMlril) l K Yee
William J. Casey after testifying
at a closed House heating.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/03/09: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403730010-7