WORLD IN BRIEF : SOUTH AFRICA : U.S. Confirms Israeli Assistance on Missile

A U.S. official confirmed reports that South Africa has test-fired a nuclear-capable ballistic missile that was built with help from Israel. Israel and South Africa are also cooperating in the development of a long-range missile that could be used to launch reconnaissance satellites, the official, who declined to be identified, said. However, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir and South African Foreign Minister Roelof F. (Pik) Botha denied the report. NBC News, which broke the story, cited unidentified intelligence sources and a CIA document in reporting that Israel had provided the technology in return for a enriched uranium for its own nuclear warheads and the use of a long-range test site in South Africa.