590. UNITED STATES-UNITED KINGDOM CONTINUED READINESS "TO NEGOTIATE A CONTROLLED NUCLEAR TEST BAN AGREEMENT OF THE WIDEST POSSIBLE SCOPE": Joint Statement Issued by the President of the United States (Kennedy) and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (Macmillan), September 9, 1961 s

President Kennedy and Prime Minister Macmillan note with deepest regret that the Soviet Union has not accepted their proposal of September 3 that tests in the earth's atmosphere producing fallout be stopped without delay.9

This action contrasts vividly with the Soviet Union's own repeated expressions of concern as to the health hazards of such testing.

The President and the Prime Minister reaffirm the readiness of the United States and the United Kingdom to negotiate a controlled nuclear test ban agreement of the widest possible scope.

591. UNITED STATES REQUEST FOR JAPANESE SUPPORT OF DISCUSSION OF A NUCLEAR TEST BAN AGREEMENT IN THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY: Note From the Secretary of State (Rusk) to the Japanese Ambassador at Washington (Asakai), September 13, 1961 10

The Secretary of State presents his compliments to His Excellency the Ambassador of Japan and has the honor to acknowledge the receipt of his note of September 6, 1961,11 with regard to the statement made by the President of the United States of America on September 5, 1961, concerning the resumption of nuclear weapon tests in the laboratory and underground.12

The United States Government desires, as a matter of the greatest urgency, to conclude an effectively controlled treaty banning nuclear weapon tests, and is therefore entirely sympathetic with the relevant considerations set forth in the note of the Japanese Government. The United States Government particularly shares the earnest wish of the Japanese Government, expressed in the final paragraph of its note:

that agreement on the suspension of nuclear tests in the atmosphere, as proposed jointly by the United States and the United Kingdom Governments to the Soviet Government on September 3, will be realized; and that furthermore, an international agreement to suspend all nuclear tests which will be accompanied by effective inspection and control measures will be established without delay. The United States Government and the United Kingdom Government, beginning on March 21, 1961, when negotiations were resumed at

$ White House (Hyannis, Mass.) press release dated Sept. 9, 1961 (text as printed in the Department of State Bulletin, Sept. 25, 1961, p. 515).

10

'Department of State press release No. 630 (text as printed in the Department of State Bulletin, Oct. 2, 1961, pp. 544-545).

11 Ante, doc. 586.

12 Ante, doc. 585.

the Conference on the Discontinuance of Nuclear Weapon Tests at Geneva, presented the Soviet Government with a series of new compromise proposals designed to reach agreement on all major outstanding issues in these negotiations.13 The Soviet reply to these proposals offered by the Western Governments was to refuse to negotiate, to make radical retrograde proposals on several important issues already agreed upon at the conference table, and finally to demand that either all Soviet proposals be accepted or that the question of the nuclear test ban be merged with the future complex negotiations over general and complete disarmament. Nevertheless, the United States and the United Kingdom persisted in their attempts to reach early agreement. As recently as August 29, 1961, the United States and the United Kingdom introduced new proposals designed to meet, as far as possible, Soviet positions on vital issues of the conference.14

The developments in these negotiations are well known to the Japanese Government which has kept itself currently informed on their progress through consultations with the United States Government and which, in addition, has made substantial and valuable contributions to the discussions of this subject during past meetings of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

The Soviet resumption of nuclear weapon tests and refusal to negotiate an agreement was greeted with shock and regret by the United States Government and by the whole world. With the hope of sparing mankind from the potential dangers of nuclear fallout, the President of the United States and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom urged the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R. to record promptly agreement on their proposal not to conduct nuclear tests which take place in the atmosphere and which produce radioactive fallout.15 Their aim was to protect mankind from the hazards of atmosphere pollution engendered by such testing and to contribute to the reduction of international tensions. Regrettably the Soviet Union has now rejected this further initiative of the United States and the United Kingdom to halt nuclear testing. 16

The Soviet Union's program of testing is progressing rapidly, suggesting that extensive secret preparations for test resumption were undertaken during a major portion of this year's session of the Geneva conference. In addition, the Soviet Union has announced its testing program is designed to develop a super terror weapon-a 100 megaton bomb. It was in the face of these threats, and only after a rigorous. and thorough review of vital security interests, that the President of the United States announced the intention of this government to begin a program of underground nuclear testing which would cause no fall

out.

The United States Government shares the regret of the Japanese people and the Japanese Government that the Soviet Union has refused to conclude a nuclear test ban agreement and that it has also

13 See ante, doc. 572.

14 See the unnumbered title, ante, p. 1141.

15 See ante, doc. 584.

16 See ante, doc, 587.

rejected the proposal that nuclear tests not be conducted in the atmosphere. It sees in this action a disdain for the security and well-being of all mankind. Unfortunately, these actions of the Soviet Union have inevitably forced the United States to undertake the necessary measures for the protection of the security interests of the United States and of the free world.

The United States Government, like the Japanese Government, reaffirms its earnest desire that an international agreement to suspend nuclear tests under effective international inspection and control will be concluded without delay. To this end, the United States has asked for full and complete consideration of the urgent need for an effectively controlled treaty banning nuclear weapon tests at the forthcoming Sixteenth General Assembly of the United Nations."

The United States Government expresses the hope that the Government of Japan will lend its support to this objective as it has in the past.

592. INITIATION OF THE UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR TESTS AT THE NEVADA TEST SITE: Announcement Issued by the White House, September 15, 1961 18

President John F. Kennedy announced that the United States conducted an underground nuclear weapons development test of low yield at the Nevada test site at 1 p.m. The detonation has produced no fallout. This is in marked contrast to Soviet nuclear tests in the atmosphere.

The United States was forced reluctantly to make the decision to resume testing after years of attempting to reach a nuclear test ban with the Soviet Union when the Soviet Union without warning but after a great deal of preparation resumed testing in the atmosphere. We have announced 10 such Soviet tests-3 of them in the megaton range. 19

Today's test was the first in the joint Atomic Energy CommissionDepartment of Defense program to strengthen the defense of the free world. The resumption of extensive Soviet testing has made this action necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of the U.S. Government to its own citizens and to the security of other free nations.

In addition, as the program progresses, tests will be utilized to provide information in support of the U.S. programs to improve means of detecting and identifying nuclear explosions for possible use in an international nuclear test control system (Vela),20 and to study the use of nuclear detonations for peaceful purposes (Plowshare).

17 Reference to a request of July 15, 1961 (A/4799); cited as an unnumbered title, ante, p. 1139.

18

White House press release dated Sept. 15, 1961 (text as printed in the Department of State Bulletin, Oct. 2, 1961, p. 543).

19 The first four tests were announced as having taken place Sept. 1, 3, 5, and 6, the seventh, Sept. 12, the eighth and ninth, Sept. 13, and the tenth, Sept. 14, 1961. See American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1960, p. 738.

20

The United States once again affirms its readiness to negotiate a controlled test ban agreement of the widest possible scope.

"THE PROBLEM TODAY IS... HOW TO SAVE MANKIND FROM THE DANGER OF A THERMO-NUCLEAR WARTHIS CAN BE DONE ONLY BY ... GENERAL AND COMPLETE DISARMAMENT": Memorandum of the Soviet Government Transmitted to the President of the U.N. General Assembly, September 26, 1961 21

593. SOVIET INTENTION TO TEST A FIFTY-MEGATON HYDROGEN BOMB: Address by the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R. (Khrushchev) Before the Twenty-second Congress of the Communist Party of the U.S.S.R., October 17, 1961 (Excerpt)22

Since I have already digressed from the text, I would like to say that our tests of new nuclear weapons are also going off very successfully. We shall soon complete these tests, evidently at the end of October: to conclude, probably, we shall explode a hydrogen bomb of 50 megatons. We have said that we have a bomb of 100 megatons and this is true; but we shall not explode such a bomb, because if we explode it, even in the most remote spot, we may break our own windows. Therefore, we shall refrain for the time being and not explode this bomb, but when we explode the 50-megaton bomb we are at the same time testing the device for the explosion of the 100-megaton bomb. However, as they used to say, God grant that we should never have to explode these bombs on any territory-this is the greatest dream of our life.

594. THE SOVIET EXPLOSION OF A FIFTY-MEGATON BOMB "COULD ONLY SERVE SOME UNCONFESSED POLITICAL PURPOSE”: Statement Issued by the White House, October 17, 1961 23

It is reported that the Soviet Union plans to explode a giant nuclear bomb-the equivalent to 50 million tons of TNT.24

We call upon the Soviet Union to reconsider this decision, if in fact it has been made. We know about high-yield weapons. Since 1957 the United States has had the technical know-how and materials to produce bombs in the 50-100 megaton range and higher. But we also

21

U.N. doc. A/4893, Sept. 29, 1961; Documents on Disarmament, 1961, pp. 505-513.

As broadcast by Radio Moscow, Oct. 18, 1961 (text as printed in Documents on Disarmament, 1961, p. 535).

23 White House press release dated Oct. 17, 1961 (text as printed in the Department of State Bulletin, Nov. 6, 1961, p. 749).

24 See supra.

know that such weapons are not essential to our military needs. Furthermore, full-scale tests are not necessary to develop 50-megaton bombs. Such an explosion could only serve some unconfessed political

purpose.

We believe the peoples throughout the world will join us in asking the Soviet Union not to proceed with a test which can serve no legitimate purpose and which adds a mass of additional radioactive fallout to that which has been unleashed in recent weeks.

595. "THE UNITED STATES IS OBLIGED IN SELF-PROTECTION TO RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE PREPARATIONS TO TEST IN THE ATMOSPHERE AS WELL AS UNDERGROUND": Statement Made by the U.S. Representative (Stevenson) in Committee I of the U.N. General Assembly, October 19, 1961 (Excerpts) 25

This committee is now beginning the substantive discussion of the two agenda items on nuclear testing.26

The United States delegation has asked to speak at this time in order to make a preliminary special statement. During the debate to follow, Ambassador Dean will present the United States position on the urgent need for a treaty to ban nuclear weapons testing, and he will explain the United States views on this matter in full detail. He will make clear the purposes and objectives we have in mind.

But the preliminary special statement which my Government wishes to make at the very outset of this discussion concerns the emergency confronting this committee and the world. The Soviet Union is now nearing the conclusion of a massive series of nuclear weapon tests. Unless something is done quickly, the Soviet testing will necessarily result in further testing by my country and perhaps by others.

There is still time to halt this drift toward the further refinement and multiplication of these weapons. Perhaps this will be the last clear chance to reverse this tragic trend. For if testing is stopped, the terrible pace of technological progress will be decisively retarded. A ban on tests is, of course, only the first step; and the control and destruction of nuclear and thermonuclear weapons is the ultimate goal. But it is an indispensable first step.

Accordingly, Mr. Chairman, I must inform the committee that the United States is obliged in self-protection to reserve the right to make preparations to test in the atmosphere, as well as underground. But the United States stands ready to resume negotiations for a treaty tomorrow. We will devote all our energies to the quickest possible conclusion of these negotiations, either here or in Geneva. If the Soviet

25 U.S.-U.N. press release 3807 (text as printed in the Department of State Bulletin, Nov. 13, 1961, pp. 816-819).

20

Item 72 ("The urgent need for a treaty to ban nuclear weapons tests under effective international control") and 73 ("Continuation of suspension of nuclear and thermonuclear tests and obligations of States to refrain from their renewal").