§ Q7. Mr. Bruce-Gardyneasked the Prime Minister what plans he has for paying an official visit to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics during the lifetime of the present Parliament.
§ Q8. Mr. Gregoryasked the Prime Minister if he will make an official visit to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
§ The Prime MinisterI have nothing at this stage to add to what I said in reply to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton, North-East (Mrs. Renée Short) on the 10th July.—[Vol. 786, c. 1567]
§ Mr. Bruce-GardyneThat reply is reassuring as far as it goes, but would not the Prime Minister agree that it would be a little inappropriate for the head of a Government which profess to attach such importance to the U.N. Charter to visit the only country in the world which is in breach of the U.N. Charter so long as it retains an army of occupation in Czechoslovakia?
§ The Prime MinisterAll of us expressed our deep concern in the emergency debate on Czechoslovakia in August, 1968, but I do not draw from that debate or from what was said on that occasion the same conclusions as does the hon. Gentleman.
§ Mr. GregoryFollowing on that point, in view of the importance recently expressed by his right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary about European security, and the Budapest proposals, does not the Prime Minister feel that a visit to Moscow would be of great importance; and would he not look again at that possibility?
§ The Prime MinisterAs I said, I have nothing to add to the Answer I gave in July. I said yesterday—and this has been repeated in all my discussions with Premier Kosygin, whether in the Soviet Union or in this country—that we ourselves with the Soviet Union as Co-Chairmen stand ever ready to play our part in the solution of the Vietnam problem if the parties concerned with the talks in Paris—and both Russia and ourselves played some part in getting them there—wish us to do so.