Missile decision ‘hard’

Press, 18 March 1985, Page 8

Missile decision ‘hard’

NZPA-Reuter Brussels The Belgian Government is facing a protest rally and a parliamentary confidence vote this week after deploying American Cruise nuclear missiles on its territory under a 1979 N.A.T.O. plan. The Government yesterday confirmed that the first batch of 16 missiles with their nuclear warheads had been installed at Florennes, in southern Belgium, within a few hours of the announcement on Friday by the Prime Minister, Dr Wilfried Martens, that deployment was going ahead. Dr Martens said on tele-

vision yesterday that approving the installation of the missiles had been the hardest decision any Belgian Government had faced since World War 11. The missile question has threatened to split Dr Martens’ four-party coalition of Social Christians and Liberals, which has survived over three years, a long time in Belgian politics. Political sources said the Government was still not out of danger as some of Dr Martens’ own Flemish Social Christian parliamentarians, hostile to missile deployment, could abstain in the confidence vote ex-

pected today or tomorrow. The political sources said a vote on the missiles alone, and not economic issues, could probably find enough supporters among representatives of fringe opposition parties to assure the Government’s survival. Some deputies say that Dr Martens disregarded their rights by hastily installing the missiles late on Friday but he said yesterday that he did not need Parliament’s authority. The missiles arrived by American Air Force transport aircraft direct soon after Dr Martens announced the Belgian decision.