§ Q2. Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Prime Minister whether he will seek to pay an official visit to Belgrade.
§ The Prime MinisterI have been invited to visit Yugoslavia, and hope to he able to take up the invitation in due course.
§ Mr. JannerWhen my right hon. Friend goes to Yugoslavia and, in the meantime, through our representatives at the Belgrade Conference, will he confirm that the Government will continue to stand firm in assuring the Soviet authorities that there can be no permanent detente while the Soviet Union continues to trample on human rights, persecute the Jewish minority and humble great Soviet citizens like Academicians Levitch and Sharanski?
§ The Prime MinisterThe United Kingdom, in company with other members of the Nine, and on a wider basis in Europe, has made clear its position on the cases. It is that detente will have a fuller meaning when it brings progress on human rights to a much higher level than it has done so far.
§ Mr. ThorpeSince the Prime Minister's support for the issue of human rights is not in question, if the right hon. Gentleman is not able to attend the Belgrade meeting during its time of sitting, will he at least see that our representatives there draw to the attention of the Soviet Union the fact that for monitoring the Helsinki agreement Professor Yuri Orlov has been in detention for nine months without being brought to trial—which is in breach of the Soviet Union's 261 criminal code? A lawyer from this country has been refused a visa to represent the professor, and observer status has been refused to those of us who wish to attend the trial. Does this not show that the Soviet Union is being totally hypocritical in giving effect to Basket III? Can it be pointed out to the Soviet Union that it cannot expect to receive technical and economic co-operation from the West unless it is prepared to honour the agreement to which President Brezhnev gave his name?
§ The Prime MinisterI am obliged to the right hon. Gentleman for the comments that he made at the beginning of his question. As for the position of individuals, the Belgrade meeting is not a forum in which individual cases can be resolved. They—as I have explained to the House on many occasions—are better resolved in different forums. Belgrade is the arena in which principles and their implementation should be discussed, and it is on those lines that the British representatives are conducting matters.
As to the cases of Mr. Orlov and Mr. Sharanski, who are at the moment held in detention, I can assure the right hon. Gentleman that the Soviet Government are fully aware of the deep concern felt in this country by many citizens about the treatment of these two gentlemen.
§ Mr. James LamondIn considering the question of human rights at Belgrade, has my right hon. Friend instructed our representative to raise the question of the presence of Turkish troops in Cyprus, which is a sovereign State and a member of the Commonwealth that has been invaded by foreign troops from a country that is a co-signatory to the Helsinki Final Act, and a State in which human rights have been trampled underfoot in the most disgraceful way, resulting in the disappearance of 2,000 Greek Cypriots, 200 of whom have been clearly identified as being in the hands of Turkey but of whom no trace can be found?
§ The Prime MinisterI am not certain whether the agenda of the Belgrade meeting is meant to cover the discussion of that serious matter, but I shall put my hon. Friend's point to the Foreign Secretary. It would be very helpful if the Turkish Government began discussions with the Greek Cypriots in such a way as 262 to enable a settlement of this matter to he achieved and the withdrawal of Turkish troops from the island of Cyprus to be obtained.
§ Mr. GoodhewIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that Basket III of the Helsinki agreement included the free movement of peoples? Will he make clear to Mr. Brezhnev, privately if he wishes, that until the Berlin Wall is pulled down and the death strip torn up there can be little credibility in the good intentions of the Soviet Government?
§ The Prime MinisterThe Soviet Union is in no doubt of our view on this matter, nor is the Government of the GDR. I took the occasion of the visit of the governing mayor of Berlin last week to make clear publicly where we stand on this matter. We shall give full support to West Berlin in carrying out the quadripartite agreement and ensuring that there is as full a movement as possible between East and West Berlin.