Aust. politicians ‘unrealistic’ on nuclear treaty

Press, 16 January 1986, Page 6

Aust. politicians ‘unrealistic’ on nuclear treaty

NZPA-AAP Sydney Some Australian politicians were as unrealistic as New Zealanders about proposals to create a nuclearfree zone in the South Pacific, said an American Congressional leader yesterday. Mr Sam Stratton, a New York Democrat who is leading an 11-member delegation of the House Armed Services Committee on a tour of the South Pacific, spoke after meeting the Australian Prime Minister, Mr Hawke.

The delegation also had talks with the Federal Parliamentary Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence. It is the second United States Congressional committee in Australia this week preparing a report on the future of the A.N.Z.U.S. Treaty and related foreign

affairs and defence issues. Earlier this week, the chairman of the House subcommittee on Asian Pacific Affairs, Mr Stephen Solarz, met Mr Hawke, the Foreign Minister, Mr Bill Hayden, and the joint committee. Mr Stratton’s committee has already been to New Zealand, French Polynesia and the Antarctic. He said that in talks with the Australian committee the congressmen had differences of opinion about the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty. Mr Stratton said that the United States had difficulties with the provision to allow each country to decide for itself whether nuclear weapons would be allowed into its harbours because this would proliferate what New Zealand was doing.