U.S. ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM DEMAND

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31441, 7 August 1967, Page 9

U.S. ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM DEMAND

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

WASHINGTON, August 6.

The United States Senate Appropriations Committee wants an immediate start on a United States anti-ballistic missile system regardless of any possible agreement with Russia to limis such an arms race, the Associated Press reports.

Backing up the committee’s formal recommendation, a Democratic Senator, Mr Richard Russell, today called China the “mad dog” among nations and said its emergence as a nuclear power made imperative an immediate start on such a defence system.

The committee said: “It is the view of the committee that the deployment of the Nike X anti-ballistic missile system should be initiated immediately, and the committee urges the execu-

tive branch of the Government to take action accordingly.” The Administration’s position has been that China could not achieve an inter-contin-ental nuclear missile before the mid-19705. But Senator Russell and the committee both took note of a report last week by the Senate-House Committee on Atomic Energy that China could possibly launch an inter-continental missile attack against the United States by the early 19705.