§ Mr. Eldon Griffithsasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will make a statement on his talks in London with the United States' Secretary of State indicating, in particular, what conclusions or common assessment he and Mr. Alexander Haig reached on the following subjects: cruise missile deployment, British support for the United States' rapid intervention force and Soviet backing for international terrorist organisations.
§ Mr. RidleyThe talks with Mr. Haig concentrated on his impressions of his visit to four Middle Eastern countries, on Southern African questions and the situation in Poland.
On the Middle East, these talks provided an opportunity for us to exchange views on the need for progress towards a peaceful settlement of the Arab-Israel problem.
We agreed that Soviet policies seemed intended to undermine the security and stability of many countries in the Middle East and that Western countries could not ignore this. We did not discuss the American rapid deployment force as such.
Mr. Haig outlined the policies of the United States Administration towards Southern African problems and explained the purpose of the current visit to Southern Africa by the United States Assistant Secretary of State designate, Mr. Crocker.
There was no discussion of cruise missile deployment or of Soviet support for international terrorist organisations.