§ Q5. Mr. Gwilym Robertsasked the Prime Minister if he will invite the Russian, United States, Chinese and French leaders to a summit conference to discuss planned disarmament and the threat to world peace in Europe and Asia.
§ The Prime MinisterNo, Sir. I do not believe that a summit conference of this kind would, at the present time, be helpful, and we should not forget the legitimate interest which non-nuclear States also have in consultations affecting world peace.
§ Mr. RobertsWould not the Prime Minister agree that the terrible war in Vietnam, and the mad armaments race which is impoverishing not only Britain but the rest of the world, are events of such importance that they require to be discussed by the leaders of all nations, and will he try to bring them together, irrespective of failure time and time again?
§ The Prime MinisterI agree that both those things are matters of such importance that it is our duty to try to solve these problems by any means open to us. I believe that the discussions, for example, which we have been having with the Soviet Union throughout this year, the recent visit of my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, and the forthcoming visit of Mr. Kosygin, are more rightly directed to solving these problems than a summit conference of the kind mentioned by my hon. Friend.
§ Sir Alec Douglas-HomeBefore Mr. Kosygin comes, will the Prime Minister consider publishing the Government's master plan for disarmament which Lord Chalfont said was ready eighteen months ago?
§ The Prime MinisterWhat is much more relevant—[Laughter.]—I must say this to the proponent of secret diplomacy over these months—is the fact that we have communicated all our proposals for disarmament to the countries principally concerned, and that for the first time now we look within reasonable distance of a non-proliferation agreement as a result of the initiatives which we have taken and the fact that in the summer of 249 1965 we took a line of our own on this which is now becoming more widely followed.
§ Mr. MendelsonWith regard to that part of the Question which deals with Europe, will the Prime Minister consider sending a favourable response to the modified Polish proposal for a European Security Conference, a proposal by the Polish Government which, as my right hon. Friend knows, removes some of the difficulties concerning Eastern Europe?
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir, but I think that our attitude to this is not confined to the Eastern German problem. We feel, and we have said this to the Soviet leaders a number of times this year, and I think they very well understand it, that at the right time an all-European security conference might be very useful. We have to iron out some of the problems first, which now I think are getting nearer a solution. That will be the right time to do it, otherwise there is a danger that a conference of this kind will become a propaganda conference, and not a security one.
§ Mr. RoyleWill the Prime Minister answer my right hon. Friend's Question about what Lord Chalfont has achieved over the last two years of his meanderings round Europe? Has he achieved anything at all with regard to disarmaments?
§ The Prime MinisterYes, Sir. Despite the fact that Lord Chalfont had to spend three months looking for the plan which we were told in the 1964 election was left behind, but which never existed except in the right hon. Gentleman's mind during that election, he has been very active both in Geneva and in New York and in a series of bilateral meetings with the Russians and everyone else in getting the negotiations to a point where, as the Soviet leaders and the American leaders have said, we are getting very close to a non-proliferation agreement.
§ Mr. RankinAre not organisations like N.A.T.O., S.E.A.T.O., and CENTO bound under Article 51 of the Charter to submit to the United Nations their war plans for maintaining peace? Is that being done by these respective organisations?
§ The Prime MinisterI do not agree with my hon. Friend's colourful description of war plans for maintaining peace, but 250 I can say that all the alliances and treaties of which we are members fully carry out all the obligations of the United Nations.