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part of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact. At the most recent Central Committee Plenum Mr Gorbachev had succeeded in replacing some of his opponents by appointees much closer to his own viewpoint. During the discussions Mr Gorbachev had explained his new proposals on strategic arms control, claiming to have removed the linkage between START and the ABM Treaty. She had pointed out that Mr
START
Gorbachev's proposals did not amount to a delinkage, since
he Soviet government would feel entitled to renege from START if they considered that the United States had breached the ABM Treaty. Mr Gorbachev had also argued that the ceiling for stationed forces on the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) side must include not only United States forces, but also those of Britian, France, Belum and Canada. She had told him that this proposal was not acceptable. In their discussion on Short Range Nuclear Forces (SNF), Mr Gorbachev appeared to accept that it would not possible to go down to zero at any rate for the time being) She had made clear that maintaining an SNF capability as essential element in NATO's strategy. She had reminded him that in accordance with the Communique issued after the IO Summit in May, the Alliance had
agreed to begin niations on SNF when a Conventional Armed Forces In agreement was in place. Yet at the United Nations the Soviet Foreign Minister, Mr Eduard Shevadnardze, had spoke once again about the total elimination of nuclear weapons
•
Continuing, the PRIME MINIST said she had also taken up the question of human rights with Mr Gorbachev. He had assured her that there were onger any problems, since any one who wanted to leave would be able to do so under the new Emigration Law. Mr Gorbachev had said that the Emigration Law was the second od priority on his list of new legislation. His top priony was passage of new legislation on property and land ership. The purpose of this legislation would be to reassure farmers as far as possible that property leases could not be taken away from them by subsequent legislation.
inual
etings of
he Inter-
tional
netary nd and
orld Bank
THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER said that during to Washington from 22 to 27 September, he had at
visit
the
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Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (PED) and the World Bank. He had had a meeting with the Japanese Finance Minister, Mr Hashimoto. The latter ad taken the same line on additional seats on the Tokyo Stock Exchange as Mr Kaifu had with the Prime Minister. was a contrast between the relative freedom with which capital goods were imported into Japan and the restrictions on the import of consumer goods and
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