PARIS, FRANCE JULY 15, 1982 (REUTERS - MARC BULKA)
GV Elysee Palace (2 shots) 0.08
SV Arrival of UAE Foreign Minister Rashid Abdullah al-Nuaimi 0.16
GV Arrival of Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Taleb Ibrahimi 0.45
GV Elysee Palace 0.48



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Background: Two members of the Arab League were received by President Francois Mitterrand at the Elysee Palace in Paris on July 15. First to arrive was the Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Rashid Abdullah al-Nuaimi, followed by the Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Taleb Ibrahimi. Accompanying the two ministers was Farouk Kaddoumi, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organisation's (PLO) political affairs department. This was the first meeting between a PLO leader and the French President but a spokesman for M. Mitterrand stressed that Mr. Kaddoumi was part of the Arab League delegation and the talks did not imply official French recognition of the PLO. After the meeting Mr. Kaddoumi explained the purpose behind the visit. He told reporters they had come to Paris to explain the latest developments in the Middle East crisis and specifically the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. The Arab League delegation also met with the French Minister for External Relations Claude Cheysson before seeing President Mitterrand.