Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, June 28, 1982, Page 7
Facts For Your Files
A Chronology of U.S.-Middle East Relations
May 27:
The United States and Morocco signed a six-year agreement which allows American military aircraft to use Moroccan air bases during emergencies. U.S. State Department spokesman Dean Fischer said the terms of the accord will not be made public.
May 27:
The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved a supplemental foreign aid package for fiscal 1983 that includes $850 million in military grant aid to Israel and $850 million in loans for purchases of U.S. military equipment. In economic aid, the Committee voted to give Israel $910 million.
June 5:
After heavy Israeli air-raids on Lebanon carried out on June 4 and 5 and retaliatory shelling of northern Israel by PLO forces, the U.S. voted in favor of United Nations Security Council resolution 508. The resolution, which passed unanimously, "calls upon all the parties to the conflict to cease immediately and simultaneously all military activities within Lebanon and across the Lebanon-Israel border and no later than 0600 hours local time on Sunday, June 6, 1982."
June 6:
While in Versailles, France, President Reagan called on Israel's Prime Minister Begin to "do what you can to avoid I military steps that could lead to a widening of the conflict." Mr. Begin received the letter at 7:00 a.m., Israel time. The invasion commenced at about 11:00 a.m.
June 6:
The United States voted in favor of United Nations Security Council resolution 509, demanding Israel "withdraw all its military forces forthwith and unconditionally to the internationally recognized boundaries of Lebanon." The resolution passed 15-0.
June 7:
In speaking with reporters about Israeli military losses, U.S. Secretary of State Alexander Haig Jr. said "we (sic) not only lost an aircraft and a helicopter yesterday, there is a claim a second aircraft has been shot down, a second helicopter and a number of army vehicles."
June 7:
The U.S. Department of State issued a statement on the fighting in Lebanon which said, in part, that "Israel will have to withdraw its forces from Lebanon, and the Palestinians will have to stop using Lebanon as a launching pad for attacks on Israel."
June 8:
In a speech to the British Parliament, President Reagan said: -The fighting in Lebanon on the part of all parties must stop and Israel must bring its forces home. But this is not enough. We must all work to stamp out the scourge of terrorism that in the Middle East makes war an ever-present threat.
June 8:
The United States cast the lone veto of a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning Israel for its noncompliance with U.N. resolutions 508 and 509 and threatening Israel with sanctions unless it agreed within six hours to a ceasefire and unconditional withdrawal from Lebanon.
June 9:
U.S. State Department spokesman Alan Romberg confirmed a report that the would-be assassins of Israel's ambassador to London were said by London police not to be members of the PLO, as charged by Israel.
June 10:
Reagan Administration officials disclosed that the President had sent Israel's Prime Minister Begin a "firm" but "friendly" message calling for Israeli forces to cease firing in Lebanon and to prepare to withdraw.
June 10:
U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Donald Regan told U.S. journalists in Washington: "If the Lebanon fighting were to invoke retaliation by oil-producing states it would be very alarming."
June 10:
President Reagan met with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, in Bonn, West Germany. After the meeting, Prince Saud told reporters: "What we are expecting from the U.S. is a clear sign of its position as regards the unprovoked and pre-meditated aggression on the part of Israel."
June 10:
Edwin Meese III, President Reagan's Counselor, said that the President was not considering imposing sanctions against Israel for its invasion of Lebanon and added that "There has been no threat to cut off military equipment." He also stated that the Syrians and had "shown restraint" in response to Israel's invasion.
June 11:
U.S. State Department spokesman Alan Romberg said in response to a question on whether the U.S. is working for an immediate Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon: "We think the issue of not having Lebanon be a launching pad for attacks against Israel is linked to Israeli withdrawal."
June 11:
The U.S. Department of State issued a statement which said: "One thing is clear. A return to the previous conditions in Lebanon cannot be allowed. Conditions must be created that will permit the restoration of the full sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Lebanon on the one hand, and the protection of Israel's security on the other."
June 12:
U.S. State Department officials said that the U.S. helped arrange for Israel and the PLO to announce ceasefires in Beirut, which went into effect at 3:00 p.m. Washington time.
June 13:
U.S. Secretary of State Alexander Haig Jr. said Saudi Arabia's new King, former Crown Prince Fahd, who succeeded King Khalid when the latter died on June 13, is "a close friend and collaborator of the United States."
June 15:
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker Jr. said: "I would not favor the use of American troops in a peacekeeping force in Lebanon, certainly not as the lead force."
June 16:
Following talks with U.S. Vice President George Bush, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Saud al Faisal told reporters that Israel's invasion of Lebanon "creates the view (among leaders of Arab countries) that the United States is at least ineffective in checking the Israeli aggression."
June 18:
The United States voted in favor of a United Nations Security Council resolution that extends for 60 days the mandate of the U.N. peacekeeping unit in southern Lebanon. The unit's responsibilities were also enlarged by the resolution to include "humanitarian assistance."
June 21:
President Reagan held a two and one half hour meeting at the White House with Israel's Prime Minister Begin. Following their talks, the President said: **We agree that Israel must not be subjected to violence from the north, and the United States will continue to work to achieve these goals and to secure withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon."
