Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XI, Arms Control and Disarmament

122. Telegram From the Mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and European Regional Organizations to the Department of State¹

Paris, March 3, 1966, 1950Z.

5463. NATUS. Subject: NAC March Two: Other Disarmament Matters. In addition discussions reported Embtels 5414² and 5416,³ following additional disarmament subjects raised on occasion Lord Chalfont briefing of NAC.

1. Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. Chalfont reported meeting a blank wall in Moscow so far as any Soviet flexibility on CTB is concerned.⁴ UK told Soviets they are eager to extend TBT to underground testing, but state of detection and identification art is such that a small number of on-site inspections would still be necessary; however UK indicated number of inspections open to discussion. Soviet reply was that they too were anxious for extension of TBT, but that any monitoring would have to be external. If West insisted on on-site international inspections, discussion was completely blocked.

When Chalfont tried to probe regarding acceptability of suggestions such as those from Egypt and Sweden (challenge inspections), Soviets show no spark of interest. Chalfont said they would not discuss any variations. Chalfont said this Soviet attitude was reflected at Geneva.

2. Freeze and Reduction of SNDV’s. Chalfont reported Soviets extremely hard on this point. They describe freeze as involving inspection without disarmament and said that only safe way to approach this problem is to abolish SNDV’s entirely.

3. Nuclear Free Zones. In response Norwegian question, Chalfont said this was discussed only briefly in Moscow. While both sides agreed NFZ’s in Latin America and Africa would be useful step, they disagreed completely so far as Central Europe concerned.UK made clear any progress in Central Europe would have to be made in context of general political settlement, including reunification of Germany.

Cleveland

1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, DEF 18. Confidential. Repeated to the Secretary of Defense, Geneva, London, Moscow, and Warsaw. Pouched to all other NATO capitals.
2. Document 121.
3. Telegram 5416 from Paris, March 2, deals with North Atlantic Council consideration of Chairman Kosygin’s proposal in his February 1 message to the Eighteen-Nation Disarmament Committee to include, among other provisions in a non-proliferation treaty, “a clause on the prohibition of the use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear States parties to the treaty which have no nuclear weapons in their territory.” (Documents on Disarmament, 1966, pp. 9-13) At the NAC meeting on March 2, Ambassador Cleveland, the U.S. Representative on the North Atlantic Council, said it was important to point out at the Eighteen-Nation Disarmament Committee that the Kosygin proposal was “unsatisfactory in order to avoid leaving the field open for the Soviets to exploit their proposal.” He stated that the United States “thought it best to shoot for a UNGA Resolution” and he “suggested best venue for any further discussions would be Geneva, leaving to NATO its continuing work on improving Western security arrangements, including the nuclear variety.” (Department of State, Central Files, DEF 18)
4. See footnote 2, Document 119.