§ Sir Frederic Bennettasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what consideration Her Majesty's Goverment have given to the relevance of the Portuguese application for membership of Western European Union to continued Portuguese membership of the European Community;
(2) what consideration Her Majesty's Government have given to the relevance of the Portuguese application for membership of Western European Union to continued Portuguese participation in the North Atlantinc Treaty Organisation;
(3) what obstacles remain to acceptance of the Portuguese application for membership of Western European Union made in 1984 in Rome.
§ Mr. EggarThe seven member Governments of the Western European Union have agreed that possible enlargement of the WEU would require completion of the reactivation process. This will be reviewed at the end of 1987. They have agreed also that it will be necessary to examine in depth the political conditions and legal implications of accession, in particular the applicability to new members of all the provisions of the modified Brussels Treaty and its additional Protocols. This remains the position. It is, of course, for the Portuguese Government to consider the relationship between their membership of NATO and of the European Community and their application to join the WEU.
§ Sir Frederic Bennettasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are the implications for Western defence of the continuance of the Anglo-Portuguese treaty of 1386.
§ Mr. EggarThe treaty, the 600th anniversary of which we celebrate this year, lies at the heart of our excellent relations with Portugal. The close identity of outlook to which the treaty contributes makes it natural that Portugal and the United Kingdom were among the co-founders of NATO. We have always collaborated closely within the Atlantic Alliance and will naturally continue to do so.