Washington Report, September 5, 1983, Page 6

Facts For Your Files: A Chronology of U.S.-Middle East Relations

August 19:

As Israel prepared to re-deploy its forces in southern Lebanon—raising fears among some observers that a partial pullback would lead to partition of that country—presidential spokesman Larry Speakes said: "In recent weeks some (observers) have questioned the motives underlying this withdrawal by Israel, saying that it presages a permanent partition of Lebanon." Disagreeing, Mr. Speakes added: "We (the Administration) are convinced that the Israeli government is committed to the full withdrawal of its forces in Lebanon."

August 21:

President Reagan's Middle East negotiator, Robert McFarlane, said at the end of a 75-minute meeting with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, in Cairo, that the partitioning of Lebanon "will not happen."

August 23:

State Department spokesman Alan Romberg announced that the two AWACS surveillance planes and eight F-15 jet fighters sent to Sudan August 7 to support Chad in its war against Libyan-backed rebels were being withdrawn. "Our assessment of the current situation is that, for the immediate future, we need not keep our Air Force assets deployed in Sudan," Mr. Romberg said. He noted that during their deployment in Sudan—which borders on Chad—the AWACS planes had been in the air only for one training flight.

August 23:

The government of Iran paid $419.5 million to the Export-Import Bank of the United States to settle claims stemming from Iran's refusal in 1979 to make further payments on loans to American banks. Iran ceased the payments after the American government froze Iran's assets in the U.S. in response to the seizure of 52 American hostages by Iranian militants. The payment is the 20th Iran has made to American banks under the January, 1981, agreement for the release of the hostages.

August 26:

In a speech to a Republican women's group President Reagan said: "The Mideast peace initiative (recommending the return of the West Bank to Arab sovereignty) which we announced almost one year ago is definitely alive and available to those parties willing to sit down and talk." He added: "It's unfortunate that neither Israel nor its Arab neighbors have yet grasped the opportunities afforded. We remain committed to the positions we set forth, positions that remain sound, positions that thus far are the only realistic basis for a solution. We will continue the pursuit for peace in the Middle East."

August 27:

During his regular Saturday radio address to the nation, President Reagan repeated some of the remarks he had made the day before regarding his Mideast peace initiative and his continued commitment to it. The President also said: "The establishment of new Israeli settlements in the occupied territories is an obstacle to peace, and we're concerned over the negative effect that this activity has on Arab confidence in Israel's willingness to return territory in exchange for security and a freely and fairly negotiated peace treaty."

August 29:

Two U.S. marines were killed and 14 others wounded in Lebanon when their positions at the Beirut International Airport were fired upon for more than five hours from territory controlled by Muslim Shiite militiamen. The marines returned the fire with artillery, small arms, and rocket fire from a helicopter gunship. The deaths were the first combat fatalities suffered by the 1,200 marines in Lebanon since arriving there September 29, 1982, as part of a 5,400-man multinational peacekeeping force along with British, French and Italian troops.

August 30:

In a letter to House and Senate leaders, President Reagan reported on the killing of two U.S. marines and the wounding of 14 others in Lebanon August 29. The President did not invoke provisions of the War Powers Act which would have called for Congressional approval to allow the marines to stay in Lebanon beyond a 60-day limit.

August 30:

Presidential spokesman Larry Speakes told reporters that the deaths of two U.S. marines in Lebanon should not trigger a Congressional review of the Marine's role in Lebanon, which could result in the invocation of the War Powers Act. "If we were conducting combat operations (in Lebanon) it would be different," Mr. Speakes said. "But we are not. The role there is as a peace-keeping force."

August 30:

After two days of reconsideration, Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel said he would not reverse his decision, announced August 28, to resign from office. At the request of members in his political party he agreed to delay submission of his resignation until they could choose a successor.

September 1:

President Reagan ordered an additional 2,000 U.S. marines, aboard three naval vessels, to be sent to Lebanon's coastal waters. This will increase the number of marines on ships offshore to 2,600. There are 1,200 marines on the ground in Lebanon, as part of a multinational force.