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Keesing's Record of World Events (formerly Keesing's Contemporary Archives), Volume 30, March, 1984 International, Page 32773 © 1931-2006 Keesing's Worldwide, LLC - All Rights Reserved. Mar 1984 - DISARMAMENT Other aspects of NATO meetings Appointment of Lord Carrington as NATO Secretary-General As well as dealing with INF matters, the NATO defence planning committee at its Dec. 6–7, 1983, meeting also considered in particular the modernization of Warsaw Pact forces, the position of Greece, Portugal and Turkey within the Alliance and the question of developments outside the NATO Treaty area. The Defence Ministers noted with concern the pace of modernization of Warsaw Pact forces “across the entire spectrum-strategic to conventional” and recorded that “in the face of this steady accumulation of Soviet military power” the Alliance “must take the necessary measures to preserve the security of its peoples”. After again stressing the importance of Greece, Portugal and Turkey having “adequate Allied assistance to carry out their missions more effectively to the advantage of all”, the ministers “again acknowledged that developments outside the NATO Treaty area might threaten the vital interests of members of the Alliance” and “recalled their agreement to take full account of the effect of such developments on NATO security, defence capabilities and the national interests of member countries and the need to consult and to share assessments on the basis of commonly identified objectives”. The main topics covered by the Dec. 8–9 meeting of the North Atlantic Council apart from INF are described below. East-West relations. ‘The Allies… remain firmly committed to balanced and verifiable arms control at the lowest possible level of forces, and will work for greater stability and progress towards genuine detente in East-West relations. (They) remain resolved to deter aggression and attempts at intimidation. They will meet their legitimate security requirements with the conventional and nuclear forces necessary…. (They) note with great concern that the Soviet Union continues its military build-up, which far exceeds defence needs, while promoting a concept of its own security which is unacceptable because it rests on maintenance of inequality in its favour. (Greece expressed its views on the second part of this last sentence.) ‘The Allies call on the Soviet Union to act with restraint and responsibility in its international behaviour and to co-operate with the West to promote a more constructive East-West dialogue aimed at reducing international tension…. While maintaining a firm and realistic attitude, the Allies would welcome any serious proposal aimed at restoring confidence between East and West…. ‘The Soviet Union bears a heavy responsibility in the current state of international relations. By its behaviour, as in Afghanistan and towards Poland, and by recourse to persecution of human rights supporters, it has created serious obstacles to the normal development of relations. (Greece expressed its views on the contents of this paragraph.) Poland. ‘The situation in Poland continues to give cause for serious concern. Some of the steps taken by the Polish authorities, such as the lifting of martial law and the amnesty for most political detainees, contrast with the introduction of other measures which reinforce a repressive system…. Afghanistan. ‘The Allies condemn the Soviet Union's continuing and intensified aggression against Afghanistan in violation of the UN Charter and in flagrant disregard of repeated calls by the UN General Assembly…. The withdrawal of (Soviet) forces is essential for a political settlement to restore Afghanistan's independence, sovereignty and non-aligned status; to permit the voluntary return of refugees; and to provide the opportunity for the Afghan people to exercise freely its right to self-determination. Trade. ‘Trade conducted on the basis of commercially sound terms and mutual advantage, that avoids preferential treatment of the Soviet Union, contributes to constructive East-West relations. At the same time, bilateral economic relations with the Soviet Union and the countries of Eastern Europe must remain consistent with broad Allied security concerns. These include avoiding dependence on the Soviet Union, or contributing to Soviet military capabilities. Thus, development of Western energy resources should be encouraged. In order to avoid further use by the Soviet Union of some forms of trade to enhance its military strength, the Allies will remain vigilant in their continuing review of the security aspects of East-West economic relations…. ‘ (Greece recalled its position on various aspects of this paragraph.) Disarmament. After referring to the Madrid CSCE and the forthcoming Stockholm conference on confidence- and security-building measures and disarmament in Europe, the decision to withdraw 1,400 nuclear warheads from Europe and the INF, START and MBFR talks (which are all treated separately above), the communique continued: ‘In the (UN) Committee on Disarmament, the Western participants continue to strive for concrete disarmament agreements. They consider as a priority task for this committee the elaboration of a verifiable agreement banning the development, production and stockpiling of all chemical weapons. ‘The Allies remain gravely concerned about strong evidence of continued use of chemical weapons in South-East Asia and Afghanistan, in violation of international law, and of Soviet involvement in the use of such weapons. (Greece recalled its position on this topic as it had been expressed during previous ministerial sessions.) They welcome the fact that the UN is continuing to develop procedures to investigate allegations of the use of chemical weapons. ‘In the context of efforts aimed at the prevention of an arms race in outer space, the Allies have also proposed in the Committee on Disarmament that the existing international law concerning the peaceful use of outer space be reviewed. [see also 31742 A page 32473] Berlin. ‘The maintenance of a calm situation in and around Berlin remains of fundamental importance to East-West relations. This continues to depend in particular on the strict observance and full implementation of the Quadripartite Agreement of Sept. 3, 1971 [see 24813 A]. The Allies hope that the further development of co-operation between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic will benefit Berlin and the people in both states in Germany and will strengthen peace in Europe in the current state of international relations. Other topics. ‘The Allies urge respect for the sovereignty of states everywhere and for genuine non-alignment. They recognize that events outside the Treaty area may affect their common interests as members of the Alliance. They will engage in timely consultations on such events, if it is established that their common interests are involved. Sufficient military capabilities must be assured in the Treaty area to maintain an adequate defence posture. Allies who are in a position to do so will endeavour to support those sovereign nations who request assistance in countering threats to their security and independence. Those Allies in a position to facilitate the deployment of forces outside the Treaty area may do so, on the basis of national decision. ‘The Allies condemn terrorist acts, which are a threat to democratic institutions and to the conduct of normal international relations. Recalling the relevant provision of the Bonn Declaration (of 1982-, they reiterate their determination to take effective measures for the prevention and suppression of such criminal acts… ‘ The Foreign Ministers also issued the following “Declaration of Brussels”. ‘We, the representatives of the 16 member countries of the North Atlantic Alliance, reaffirm the dedication of the Allies to the maintenance of peace in freedom. ‘Our Alliance threatens no one. None of our weapons will ever be used except in response to attack. We do not aspire to superiority, neither will we accept that others should be superior to us. Our legitimate security interests can only be guaranteed through the firm linkage between Europe and North America. We call upon the Soviet Union to respect our legitimate security interests as we respect theirs. ‘We are determined to ensure security on the basis of a balance of forces at the lowest possible level. Faced with the threat posed by the Soviet SS-20 missiles, the Allies concerned are going forward with the implementation of the double-track decision of 1979. The ultimate goal remains that there should be neither Soviet nor United States land-based long-range INF missiles. The deployment of US missiles can be halted or reversed by concrete results at the negotiating table. In this spirit we wish to see an early resumption of the INF negotiations which the Soviet Union has discontinued. (Denmark and Greece reserved their positions on this paragraph; Spain, not having been a party to the double-track decision of 1979, reserved its position on this paragraph.) ‘We urge the countries of the Warsaw Pact to seize the opportunities we offer for a balanced and constructive relationship and for genuine detente. In all arms control negotiations progress must be made among the states participating, in particular in: START; the INF talks; the negotiations on MBFR; (and) the endeavours for a complete ban on chemical weapons in the (UN) Committee on Disarmament. ‘We are also resolved to use the forthcoming Stockholm conference as a new opportunity to broaden the dialogue with the East, to negotiate confidence-building measures and enhance stability and security in the whole of Europe. “We shall continue to do our utmost to sustain a safe and peaceful future. We extend to the Soviet Union and the other Warsaw Pact countries the offer to work together with us to bring about a long-term constructive and realistic relationship based on equilibrium, moderation and reciprocity. For the benefit of mankind we advocate an open, comprehensive political dialogue, as well as co-operation based on mutual advantage.” At their December meeting the Foreign Ministers noted “with regret” the intention of the NATO Secretary-General, Dr Joseph Luns (72), to relinquish his post, which he had held since 1971 [see 24661 A; 24873 B], and invited Lord Carrington to succeed him. Lord Carrington (64) was a junior minister at the Ministries of Agriculture and Fisheries and of Defence in Conservative governments from 1951 to 1956, when he became UK high commissioner in Australia; on his return to Britain in 1959 he was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty, subsequently serving in 1963–64 as Minister without Portfolio and Leader of the House of Lords. He was leader of the opposition peers from 1964 to 1970, Secretary of State for Defence from 1970 to January 1974 and briefly Secretary of State for Energy in early 1974. On the return of the Conservative government in May 1979 he was appointed Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, but resigned on April 5, 1982, in connexion with the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands [see page 31531; 31537 A]. Lord Carrington was to take up his new post on June 25, 1984.-(Times-Daily Telegraph-Guardian Financial Times-New York Times-International Herald Tribune-Le Monde-Neue Zurcher Zeitung-US Information Service Soviet-Embassy Press Department, London-NATO Information Department, BrusselsHansard-Canadian-News Facts-Norwegian Information Service, Oslo) ( Prev. rep. 32460 A; NATO 32052 A)