World Notes SOUTH AMERICA

President Fidel Castro has not visited Brazil since 1959, the year he installed himself as Cuba's supremo. So when Castro announced that he would attend last week's inauguration of Brazil's new President, Fernando Collor de Mello, authorities there were not sure what to expect: certainly a Cuban security detachment, perhaps even a few small arms.

Instead, the Cubans shipped in a small arsenal. On March 9 a Cuban transport plane landed in Brasilia carrying 100 passengers and crew members. According to the Rio daily Jornal do Brasil, there were also ten tons of weaponry aboard. At first the Cubans tried to convince the hosts that the cargo consisted of medical supplies. When the Brazilians insisted on an inspection, they discovered machine guns, grenades, an antiaircraft gun, even missiles.

After more than a day of heated negotiations, the transport plane headed back for Cuba, its cargo intact; Castro's security detail was left with only handguns.