News In Brief

Castro stops off in Spain for talks with premier

Cuban leader Fidel Castro set foot in Western Europe for the first time Thursday when he made an unscheduled four-hour visit to Spain on his way home from President Yuri Andropov's funeral in Moscow.

Mr. Castro, along with Nicaraguan junta chief Daniel Ortega Saavedra, was met at Madrid's Barajas Airport by Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez.

After a reception ceremony at the airport, the three men traveled by helicopter to a working lunch at the prime minister's Moncloa residence, where officials said the Central American crisis and East-West relations were among topics discussed.

Castro has traditionally been kept at arm's length by West European governments, although Spain has maintained relations with Havana throughout his 25-year rule.