We need to have the ability to check that no significant changes can take place without our knowledge. I should have thought that such needs must be common to both West and East, if we are to achieve the degree of certainty necessary for real progress in negotiations on force reductions in Central Europe. Arms control is not just about force reductions. A climate of confidence and trust is necessary if progress towards diarmament is to be made. At the Stockholm Conference on disarmament in Europe, my Government remains committed to negotiating and adopting a set of mutually complementary confidence and security building measures designed to reduce the risk of military confrontation in Europe. The confidence-building measures adopted at Helsinki in 1975 were a first step on the road to enhanced confidence and security in Europe. The Stockholm Conference represents a much needed opportunity to extend substantially the scope of those measures. The proposals put forward by my Government and its allies go directly to the heart of the issue. Concrete measures of the kind we propose will make confrontation less likely. They will raise the political cost of intimidation. They will be reciprocal, and verifiable, and by establishing increased openness about the nature and scope of military activities, they will create confidence and improve security. That is the purpose of the Conference. There are now welcome signs in Stockholm that the detailed discussions that have taken place in 1985 may yet lead to the sort of substantive progress we look for. My Government will certainly continue to negotiate seriously to that end. I have referred to talks going on in our own European region. of course there are other initiatives at the regional level in other parts of the world. In his MLG/sm A/C.l/40/PV.ll 32 (Mr. Cromartie, United Kingdom) speech to the General Assembly on 23 September, His Excellency the President of 
**Analysis**
This text appears to be focused on international relations and disarmament, with the speaker discussing the importance of confidence-building measures and negotiations to reduce the risk of military confrontation in Europe. The language used is formal and diplomatic, suggesting that the text is an official speech or statement. The content does not relate to economic development, natural resources, industry, or other topics that are typically associated with specific sectors or industries.

**Category**
International relations, Security