HC Deb 16 July 1980 vol 988 c564W
20. Mr. Stoddart

asked the Lord Privy Seal if he will seek to pay an official visit to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to discuss the possibility of establishing a nuclear-free zone in Europe.

Mr. Ridley

No. It would be unrealistic for NATO to consider removing its nuclear weapons from Europe while nuclear weapons targeted against Western Europe continued to be deployed in the Soviet Union. The disparity in conventional forces in any case means that nuclear weapons are essential to Western Europe's security.

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