August 10, 2003	Sunday	Jumadi-us-Sani 11, 1424

CRAWFORD, Aug 8: US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld confirmed on Friday that Pentagon officials met Iranian arms dealer Manucher Ghorbanifar — a key figure in the 1980s Iran-Contra arms scandal — but said nothing came of the meeting more than a year ago.

Newsday reported that two Pentagon officials had had several secret and unauthorized meetings with Mr Ghorbanifar that appeared to be aimed at undercutting sensitive backchannel negotiations with the Iranian government.

Asked about the report at an appearance with President George Bush, Mr Rumsfeld said “a meeting did take place, and the information was moved around the interagency process to all the departments and agencies, and it dropped.

“That is to say, as I understand it, there wasn’t anything there that was of substance or of value that needed to be pursued further.”

Mr Rumsfeld denied the meetings were aimed at undercutting other negotiations with the Iranians.

“Absolutely not. I mean, everyone in the interagency process I’m told was apprised of it. And it went nowhere,” he said.

The defense secretary portrayed the contacts as nothing out of the ordinary.

“This happens, of course, frequently. People come in offering suggestions or information or possible contacts, and sometimes they’re pursued. Obviously, if it looks as though something might be interesting it’s pursued. If it isn’t, it isn’t,” he said.

Ghorbanifar is an Iranian arms dealer who acted as a go-between in the 1980s Iran-Contra scheme to secretly sell Iran arms for its war against Iraq and divert the proceeds to rebels fighting Nicaragua’s leftist Sandinista government.

Newsday identified the Pentagon officials who met him as Harold Rhode, a Middle East expert, and Larry Franklin, a Defense Intelligence Agency analyst. Both currently work for Douglas Feith, undersecretary of defense for policy, it said. —AFP