Caspar Weinberger, who served as defense secretary under former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, died in hospital on Tuesday near his house in Mount Desert Island, Maine. He was 88.

Weinberger, best known for his related roles in the Strategic Defense Initiative program, also known as "Star Wars," and in the Iran-Contra affair, had been treated for pneumonia recently, news reports said.

He joined the Reagan administration in 1981 as defense secretary and during his tenure, he presided over a period of massive military spending, persuading the Congress to fund the " Star Wars" program - a system for defending the United States against incoming missiles from space and by land.

Weinberger resigned in 1987, following claims he had been involved in selling arms to Iran to fund pro-US rebels in Nicaragua. He was indicted later on felony counts for his alleged role in the Iran-Contra affair, but was pardoned by then President George H.W. Bush in 1992, weeks before he was to have stood trial.

The Iran-Contra affair involved the secret sale of weapons to Iran in exchange for the release of American hostages held in Lebanon by pro-Iranian militants and the diversion of money from that sale to provide support for rebels in Nicaragua known as the "Contras."

Source: Xinhua