HC Deb 16 December 1963 vol 686 cc151-2W
52. Mr. Warbey

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will consult with the Soviest co-chairman regarding a recall of the 1954 Geneva Conference in order to bring about the end of the civil war in Vietnam, the cessation of foreign military intervention, and the full implementation of the Geneva Agreements in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

54. Mr. Mayhew

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, what request has been made by Cambodia for the Geneva Accord concerning Laos to be extended to that country, and for the convening of a 14-power conference; and what reply Her Majesty's Government has sent to this request.

Mr. P. Thomas

There can be no advantage in a further international conference on Vietnam so long as the communist insurgents there remain under arms. As regards Laos, the International Control Commission was set up under the Geneva Agreement of 1962 in order to deal with a situation like the present one. The trouble is that the Communists have not allowed the Commission to work properly.

As my right hon. Friend told the House on the 2nd December, the Cambodian Government In their message of 24th November proposed an international conference to secure the neutrality of that country. Her Majesty's Government have told the Cambodians that we are giving this proposal urgent and sympathetic consideration and we hope to give a final reply as soon as we have finished consulting the other governments concerned.