P.M. ‘composed’ to treaty reaction

Press, 3 December 1985, Page 3

P.M. ‘composed’ to treaty reaction

By

PATRICIA HERBERT

in Wellington

The Prime Minister, Mr Lange, accepted with composure yesterday the prospect that the anti-nuclear bill might provoke the Americans into giving 12 months notice of withdrawal from A.N.Z.U.S. He said it would not concern him as much as it would “other people in the alliance,” a reference probably to Australia which he later acknowledged would be “very considerably aggrieved.” However, Mr Lange emphasised that he would prefer A.N.Z.U.S. to survive and said considerable effort had been made to produce legislation that did not challenge the United States policy of neither confirming nor denying the presence of nuclear weapons. He made it clear that the best scenario for him would be for the United States to accept the ban. However, he also welcomed the week-end statement by the American Congressman, Mr Stephen Solarz, that the dissolution of the treaty might enhance relations by removing an irritant.

Mr Lange said that he admired such a positive approach but that he recognised that there were “negatives” in ending A.N.Z.U.S. and that the Gov-

ernment did not want it ended.

The United States has threatened repeatedly that the bill will mean the effective termination of the alliance and it was on this that Mr Lange was being questioned.

He canvassed another possibility, that the Americans would remain in A.N.Z.U.S. but would refuse to honour their obligations under it.

That, he said, might be a matter for litigation because in some countries it was an issue of constitutional principle that administrations could not discard the responsibilities of a

treaty to which they were signatories. ' Mr Lange did not elaborate but a spokesman for the American Embassy was puzzled by the remark. He said A.N.Z.U.S. was a private arrangement among the three allies and that it had no international standing beyond them. The legislation was approved by the Cabinet yesterday after being approved, subject to what were apparently only minor alterations, by the caucus last week.

It was described by Mr Lange as a lengthy document which took “a bit of grappling with.”