§ 47. Mr. Beswickasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the official attitude of the United Kingdom delegate to the Soviet proposal at the United Nations General Assembly that an agreement should be concluded calling for the prohibition of the military utilisation of cosmic space, and the launching of rockets into outer space only in accordance with a co-ordinated and agreed programme of scientific research.
§ Mr. ProfumoThe hon. Member for Uxbridge's Question fails to state the Soviet position accurately. The Soviet Government combined with their proposal 197W about outer space proposals dealing with foreign military bases which were quite unacceptable.
So far as outer space is concerned, the proposal for the establishment of some kind of international machinery to deal with the peaceful uses of outer space is common to both the Soviet and to the 20-Power draft resolutions. It remains the policy of Her Majesty's Government. It is on that common ground that we have since tried to build.