No test assurance

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33656, 4 October 1974, Page 2

No test assurance

t j- (N.Z.P.A. Staff Correspondent) | J PARIS, October 3. ' I The French Govern-; J ment is not yet prepared ~ to give an unequivocal r assurance that it has, t conducted the last ' ! atmospheric nuclear test. in the Pacific. |i ■ ■ . , ■ J ■ ■' It is also not considering;! ( signing the partial test ban i ;! treaty, which bans tests in , ' the atmosphere, regarding it 1 as a misleading and ineffec-l< tive means of obtaining dis- t armament. < These points have emerged i from official statements and ! ! documents on the French t •nuclear programme'since this; :, year’s test series in thej! . atmosphere over ‘ Mururoa ‘ t

Atoll ended on September 15 The Higher Defence Coun :il — France’s top defencf tolicy body, whose chairmar s President Giscarc i’Estaing — is expected tc •eview the nuclear testing trogramme when it meets ir ’aris later this month. The last official word or he testing programme cams rom the Foreign Ministei Mr Sauvagnargues) who tolc he United Nations Genera' Assembly last week: “We iave now reached a stage ir >ur nuclear technology 7 that (takes it possible for us tc :ontinue our programme by inderground testing, and we iave taken steps to do so as arly as next year.” Observers noted that Mr Sauvagnargues did not say here would be no more

atmospheric tests, and it isi ; known that his officials spent imany hours working on the; exact wording of that sen-; fence. The feeling in Paris is that: the Government wants toj move the tests undeground; as soon as possible. But it' |is keeping its options open,; and further atmospheric tests might be held if the] military convinces the i politicians that they are; ; necessary, even in conjunction with a new underground, testing programme. A review of national; defence, issued by the Gov-i ernment’s press and informa-1 tion service, has firmly i quashed any thought that Mr Giscard’s Goverment may [sign the partial test ban ! <®ty.