ARMS CONTROL TALKS FAIL

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27961, 7 May 1956, Page 13

ARMS CONTROL TALKS FAIL

West To Work For Solution

(N2. Press Association—Copynght)

(Rec. 9 pan.) LONDON, May 5. The four 5A estern Powers—Britain, France, the Lnited States and Canada—which have been discussing disarmament in London with the Russians since March 19, last night issued a. joint statement in which they recorded their determination to go on trying for a disarmament plan in spite of the failure of the present series of meetings. Earlier in the day. the sub-committee of the United Nations Disarmament Commission held "the final meeting of the present London series and the talks are now in recess while the parent commission considers its report. The commission, which consists of the United Nations Security Council members plus Canada, will probably do this about the middle of June. The sub-committee had been considering three plans. A French-British plan envisaged “freezing” armed forces and instituting an arms'control organisation, with an eventual ban in its final stage on nuclear weapons and nuclear tests. The Russian plan provided for a limitation of forces and a central European zone of special limitation, including East and West Germany. It called for an immediate halt to nuclear test explosions apart from this. The United States sponsored a plan to fix armed forces at agreed limits higher than those proposed by Russia, with an undertaking that after a negotiated date all newly-produced nuclear material would be devoted to peaceful uses.

The joint statement by the Western Powers said that the Western stand was based on six principles: (1) Disarmament by stages, each phase being completed separately before another begins and including the settlement of major political problems. (The British-French plan links German reunification with the first stage.) (2) Disarmament should begin under effective international control. Armed forces, conventional armaments and military expenditure should be reduced to levels feasible “in present unsettled world conditions.” Further reductions would be carried out as world conditions improved. (3) At an appropriate stage and under proper safeguards, the stockpiling of nuclear weapons would be banned and all future production of nuclear material devoted to peaceful uses. .

(4) A strong control organisation with inspection rights, including aerial reconnaissance, would be developed from the beginning along with the disarmament measures. (This is based on President Eisenhower’s “open skies” pilot project). “The control measures should also provide against major surprise attacks.” the statement said. “This is particularly important so long as it is impossible to account for past production of nuclear material.” (5) Limited inspection in early stages to help develop an effective control system. (6) The programme could be suspended in whole or part if a major state dishonoured the agreement or if world peace were’ threatened. British diplomatic sources said in London that they believed the Soviet Government might shortly announce important unilateral cuts in conventional arms.

The Soviet Government appeared convinced that there would be no war in the near future and was in any case convinced that conventional armaments were largely obsolete, these sources Said.