Moscow plans matcher for MX—Novosti

Press, 28 May 1983, Page 8

Moscow plans matcher for MX—Novosti

NZPA Moscow The Soviet Union said yesterday that it would develop a new nuclear missile to match the MX, and accused Washington of using the weapon to blackmail Russia at the Geneva arms talks.

The commentary by the Novosti news agency was the first reaction in Moscow to Thursday’s vote in the Senate endorsing President Ronald Reagan’s plans to store 100 MX missiles in

underground silos in the western United States. A Novosti commentator, Alexander Malyshkin, said that the Americans would not succeed in what he called an attempt to force the Soviets to accept United States terms at the Geneva negotiating table. He said that the MX would trigger a new round of the arms race if built. “Contrary to what Washington claims, the MX cannot give any impetus to the

Soviet-United States talks on the limitation and reduction of strategic weapons. “Plainly speaking, Washington needs the nuclear missile MX to blackmail the U.S.S.R. in Geneva into accepting American terms. “The Soviet Union is not a defeated country and no terms can be dictated to it. Moscow has clearly declared that it will respond by creating a counterpart weapons (system) of its own,” he said.