§ Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's response to the proposals of the Warsaw treaty countries for a one or two-year moratorium on the growth of military spending of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and Warsaw treaty states; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorA freeze on the military spending of the two alliances would do nothing to eliminate the conventional imbalance in Europe that so favours the Warsaw pact and which lies at the heart of the region's security problems. Nor would it reduce the proportion of Soviet spending on defence which, according to our estimates, is in the order of 15 per cent. of GNP, as compared to 5 per cent. in the United Kingdom.