Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell),Official Report, 13 April, columns 646–47, what assessment has been made of the SAAD-16 contract; what contacts have been made with the ambassadors of Egypt, Iraq and Argentina, or their diplomatic representatives in the United Kingdom arising from the Condor-2 missile development; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. WaldegraveWe have no reason to doubt the recent media speculation that the SAAD-16 project is connected to Iraq's missile development programme. I made clear to the Iraqi ambassador on 19 April our serious concern over ballistic missile proliferation.