“Greater Hope” For Nuclear Test Ban

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30156, 13 June 1963, Page 17

“Greater Hope” For Nuclear Test Ban

(New Zealand Press Association)

. WELLINGTON, June 12. “This gives us greater hope,” said the Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) commenting today on the news that high-level talks would be held in Moscow next month between the United States, Britain and the Soviet Union in a special effort to get agreement , on a treaty to ban nuclear tests. “It is of particular interest to New Zealand that the United States representative at these negotiations will be Mr Averell Harriman, with whom we were able to discuss the whole problem in the course of the recent A.N.Z.U.S. meeting in Wei-

lington,” said Mr Holyoake. “I welcome also President Kennedy’s announcement that the United States will not test in the atmosphere unless other states do," said Mr Holyoake, “because it is atmospheric tests which carry most risk of radioactive fallout." "The obstacle which has so far stood in the way of a test ban treaty has been dis-j agreement about the degree of international inspection necessary to provide reasonable assurance that no clandestine tests were being conducted underground," said Mr Holyoake. “It was already agreed that national systems of detection were now inadequate to detect tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water., "The United States and Britain had earlier suggested that a treaty covering these types of tests should be concluded while negotiations for an agreement on underground tests was continued,” said the Prime Minister. “But the Soviet Union has rejected this approach,” he said. “It was recently made clear by the United States Secretary of State, Mr Dean Rusk, that this offer still holds good. “It may be hoped the special negotiations mow proposed will resolve all the principal differences .remaining, but even if the problem of inspection of underground testing is not resolved I certainly hope that a treaty which would include atmospheric testing can be agreed upon,” said the Prime Minister.