Oral Answers to Questions — Central Europe (Frontiers)

– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 15 June 1964.

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Photo of Mr Stephen Swingler Mr Stephen Swingler , Newcastle-under-Lyme 12:00, 15 June 1964

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will propose to the other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Council the making of a joint declaration renouncing territorial claims and demands for frontier changes in Central Europe.

Photo of Mr Stephen Swingler Mr Stephen Swingler , Newcastle-under-Lyme

Does the right hon. Gentleman recall the speech of Dr. Seebohm, the Federal Minister of Transport in West Germany, in May, in which he claimed that the Sudetenland is a part of Germany and also asserted that the Munich Agreement was still valid? As Dr. Seebohm still remains a Minister in the Federal Government of West Germany, would it not be wise, if the Western Powers wish to find a basis for negotiations about the future of Central Europe, for them to repudiate this kind of statement and make quite clear that they are not considering territorial claims?

Photo of Mr Peter Thomas Mr Peter Thomas , Conway

The hon. Gentleman will have seen that, in a speech in New York on 11th June, Chancellor Erhardt repeated that the Federal Government had no territorial claims on Czechoslovakia.

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