Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out a list of serious verification problems remaining to be resolved before a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty could be concluded, to which general reference is made in paragraph 210, on page 11 of the Statement on the Defence Estimates, 1988, volume 1, Cm. 344–1.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonThe Government's approach to the seismic verification of treaties constraining nuclear testing was set out in their paper submitted to the conference on disarmament in 1985 (CD 610), a copy of which has been placed in the Library.
Dr. ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment has been made by scientists at the Blacknest research centre into the implications for verification of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty of the United States-Union of Soviet Socialist Republics joint verification experiment test, conducted at the Nevada test site on 17 August.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonThe joint verification experiment carried out at the Nevada test site in August was designed to assess verification techniques to enable the ratification of the threshold test ban treaty. The test was neither designed nor intended to make progress towards the verification of a comprehensive test ban.