LONDON VISIT BY CHOU

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 29058, 21 November 1959, Page 13

LONDON VISIT BY CHOU

Butler Rejects Proposal LONDON, November 19. The Home Secretary (Mr R. A. Butler) today rejected a suggestion that the Prime Minister of the Chinese People’s Republic (Mr Chou En-lai) should be invited to Britain for talks on Far Eastern problems. Mr Harold Davies (Labour) had asked the Prime Minister (Mr Macmillan) to invite Mr Chou to Britain “in view of all the bilateral talks now arranged before a summit conference.”

Replying in the House of Commons on behalf of the Prime Minister, Mr Butler said: “No. The Prime Minister does not think such a*proposal is timely.”

Mr Butler said: “As regards the problems on the border of China and India, the talks proposed by Mr Chou and Mr Nehru are a matter essentially for the Chinese and Indian Governments.

“As regards Laos, the general view is that our contact with the Soviet Government is at present preferable to any widening of the discussions.”

Mr Butler said he had “nothing to add” when the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Gaitskell, suggested that the simplest way ofdealihg with the problem would be for China to take her proper seat in the United Nations.