HC Deb 24 June 1959 vol 607 cc1176-7
21. Mr. A. Henderson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will make a statement on the progress achieved at the Geneva Conference on the discontinuance of nuclear tests and on the proposals for technical studies of the control of high altitude and subterranean nuclear tests.

23. Mr. Mayhew

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress of the conference on nuclear tests at Geneva.

Mr. Ormsby-Gore

The Conference has agreed to hold technical discussions on the control of high-altitude nuclear weapons tests. These discussions started on 22nd June and it is hoped to complete them within one week. The Conference has continued to deal with the main issues which divide it, namely the Soviet demand for a veto in the Control Commission, the question of inspection of events which could be suspected of being nuclear explosions, and the staffing of control posts. Some further progress has been made on these issues, but I regret to say that the Soviet delegate still refuses to discuss recent information bearing on the detection and identification of underground tests.

Mr. Henderson

Can the right hon. Gentleman say whether the technical discussions that were proposed, and accepted by the Soviet delegation, are now taking place?

Mr. Ormsby-Gore

Yes. They began or Monday of this week.

Mr. Mayhew

Is the Minister of State aware that, while the Soviet Government are resisting a number of these more detailed points of the Western Powers, the fact that they are prepared to admit international control teams all over the Soviet Union is a great step forward; and does not this mean, or strongly suggest, that they do not intend to have illegal tests once they have signed this treaty? Further, is he aware that the Americans will cause considerable dismay to their friends and allies in the West if they do not really go ahead and press on with the treaty at the present time?

Mr. Ormsby-Gore

I think that the Americans are most anxious to arrive at an agreement to stop nuclear weapon tests and, as the hon. Gentleman has said, I think that we are making steady progress in that direction.

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