CENTRAL EUROPE (RAPACKI PLAN)

HC Deb 19 November 1958 vol 595 cc1134-7

19. Mr. Brockway

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if Her Majesty's Government will reconsider their declared policy regarding the establishment of a neutralised area in Central Europe, including Western and Eastern Germany, Poland, and Czechoslovakia, in view of the official proposal by the Foreign Minister of Poland that an agreement should be negotiated for disarmament in this area, covering both nuclear and conventional weapons.

33. Mr. Warbey

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will reopen discussions with the Polish Government on the Rapacki Plan, in view of Mr. Rapacki's official statement in Oslo that his Government are now prepared to include provisions for the reduction of conventional armed forces and weapons in the proposed nuclear-free zone in Central Europe.

35. Mr. Healey

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government with regard to the latest official proposals of the Polish Government concerning the limitation of armaments in Central Europe.

37. Mr. J. Hynd

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether Her Majesty's Government have now considered the new proposals for disengagement in Europe officially suggested by M. Rapacki; and whether it is now intended to initiate discussions with the Polish authorities on these proposals.

Mr. Selwyn Lloyd

So far, no official communication has been received from the Polish Government. We are, however, studying the statement made by Monsieur Rapacki on 4th November, in consultation with our Allies.

Mr. Brockway

In studying that statement, will the right hon. and learned Gentleman bear in mind that in three respects the new proposal goes much further than the earlier proposal from Poland? In the first place, inspection and control are allowed. In the second place, in the first stage nuclear weapons would only be prohibited to countries which do not possess them. Thirdly, in the second stage there would be a reduction in conventional arms as well as in nuclear weapons. In view of these great concessions, will the right hon. and learned Gentleman seek to find a basis of agreement?

Mr. Lloyd

I certainly think that the Polish Government and their Foreign Minister are absolutely sincere in putting forward these proposals. I think the difficulty or the factor which must govern our view of this matter is whether any plan For disengagement will be acceptable if it changes the balance of military security to the disadvantage of either side. That seems to be the test by which we should judge these proposals.

Mr. Warbey

Is not the great merit of these new proposals that they offer reciprocal advantages? Will not the Foreign Secretary seize this opportunity to take a British initiative for the calling of a high-level conference to discuss these proposals?

Mr. Lloyd

What I said is that we are considering these proposals in concert with our allies, and the test we must apply to them is whether they change the balance of military security to our disadvantage. We are examining them in the light of that test.

Mr. Healey

If it is indeed the case that the Government have not yet made up their mind on this matter, will the Foreign Secretary instruct the News Department of the Foreign Office not to make comments on these proposals which are based on distortion of their content so extreme as to be dishonest?

Mr. Lloyd

If the hon. Member will give chapter and verse of any comments, I will look into it.

Mr. Bevan

Is it not a fact that these new proposals, whilst not yet made officially by the Polish Government to the Western Powers, nevertheless constitute a very hopeful departure in policies relating to Europe? Ought not the Foreign Secretary himself to take rather more initiative in this matter than he has taken so far? How long will these consultations take? Must we allow the European situation to go on deteriorating before we seize the opportunities available to us?

Mr. Lloyd

I am not prepared to accept any plan which changes the balance of military security to our disadvantage. I say that flatly and directly.

Mr. Bevan

Is it not a fact that, in the first place, the Foreign Secretary says that he is examining these plans in association with our allies and, in the second place, he throws cold water on the proposals at the very beginning? Whether there is a balance of disadvantage or advantage to us surely is easily assessable without allowing weeks and months to go by while the European situation deteriorates?

Mr. Lloyd

There are some cases in which a flat negative is not the right thing at the beginning. I should have thought the right hon. Member would have thought of the wisdom of considering whether these proposals in fact involve some military disadvantage to us. I tell him again that we will certainly not accept any proposal to do that.

Mr. J. Hynd

Does the right hon. and learned Gentleman realise that many of us are encouraged to learn that apparently he now recognises the significance of the fact that these proposals come from Poland? Will he take into consideration the fact that, whatever may be the arguments against the total withdrawal of the occupation troops facing each other in this area at present, on the Government's own pronouncements there is no balance of conventional forces there and no nuclear weapons there, and the great advantage of the Rapacki Plan is that it does not call for a complete withdrawal of occupation forces but for a reduction in what admittedly are still token forces, which would still have the same effect, and that acceptance of the Plan would give an opportunity of examining the effects of a reduction of these token forces?

Mr. Lloyd

I have said we shall examine the proposals, but I repeat that proposals which would operate to change the balance of military security on either side are not acceptable. In saying this, I thought I was speaking for both sides of the House.

Mr. Bevan

The right hon. and learned Gentleman is not speaking for us.

Mr. Lloyd

I was quoting from a joint statement by the Labour Party and the Trades Union Congress stating: We fully realise that no plan for disengagement will be acceptable if it changes the balance of military security to the disadvantage of either side. That statement was made on 23rd April, 1958, and I entirely agree with it.

Mr. Bevan

But is it not a fact that the last proposal, which, as I admit, has not yet been put forward officially by the Polish Government but mentioned by M. Rapacki—the Foreign Secretary of Poland—is a very important departure from the original position and does not, in our view, affect the balance against us at all. We do not therefore accept the Foreign Secretary's position in this matter.