§ 19. Sir William van Straubenzeeasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether, in view of the disarmament negotiations opening in Geneva, he will consider postponing the further deployment of cruise missiles.
§ Mr. StanleyNo. We have, however, always made it clear that NATO's deployment, which is planned to be completed over a five year period, can be halted, modified or revised at any time if results in arms control negotiations warrant it. To halt our own deployment of intermediate nuclear forces unilaterally would perpetuate the very substantial superiority of the Soviet Union in this area and remove any incentive on it to negotiate reductions.