Arms Control Negotiations

HC Deb 25 July 1984 vol 64 cc695-6W

27. Mrs. Clwyd

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he is satisfied with the current state of arms control negotiations.

Mr. Luce

No. We regret that, despite continuing efforts by the allies to advance negotiations at the Geneva conference on disarmament, the Stockholm conference and at the Vienna talks on conventional force reductions, progress remains disappointingly slow.

We attach great importance to the resumption of nuclear arms control talks. The United States has made clear that it is ready to return to the negotiating table. We trust that the Soviet Union will adopt the same constructive attitude.

We also trust the Soviet Union will accept as serious and constructive the United States response to its own proposals for talks on outer space arms control.