A-TEST BAN

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29989, 26 November 1962, Page 5

A-TEST BAN

‘Talks Bid By Russia’ (NX Press Assn.— Copyright) NEW YORK. Nov. 24. The Soviet Prime Minister (Mr Khrushchev) has informed the Britiieh Government at tm wiHaognees to discuss • ban on nuclear teats, according to the “New York Times.” The newspaper, in a report from London quoting qualified sources, said the Soviet leader was ready tor talks although be understood that neither the United States nor Britain would be satisfled with using automatic devices as the sole means of monitoring tor underground nuclear exploeaou*. ‘The British believe Mr Khrushchev has modified bis opposition to outside inspection and verification,*’ the dispatch said. “It is thought he is willing to have this carried out in the Soviet Union by a limited number of experts from abroad."

The British Prime Minister (Mr Macmillan) said today that if the so-called “blade boxes” of sealed instruments could play a role in getting nearer a nuclear test ban agreement the West was “only too anxious to make use of iit.”

The black boxes tor detecting underground tests were proposed by three American and three Soviet scientists who attended the Pugwash scientific conference this year. In the House of Commons today, Mr Christopher Mayhew (Labour) asked what reports Mr Macmillan had had from his scientific advisers on these boxes.

Mr Macmillan replied: “I am advised that these proposals have a number of limitations. Any idea which may reduce the gap between the Soviet Union and the West deserves careful consideration. It may be that these sealed instruments would reduce the number of unidentified seismic events in the Soviet Union, but they would not themselves dispose of the need for verification.”

A very large number of the boxes would be required to make any real impact on the problem and there was also the quite difficult question of how to deal with “spoofing” interfering with the operation.