lowestpossible level. TheSoviet-American talksinGenevaonnuclear armsandspaceshouldleadthe twocountries directly concerned toproceed todeepcutsintheirmost destabilizing offensive weapons whilemaintaining strategic equilibrium.BCl'/td A/40/PV.lO 66 (Mr.Dumas, France) France welcomed theresumption ofcontacts between Eastandwestandis particularly pleased thattheGeneral-Secretary oftheCommunist Partyofthe SovietUnion, Mr.Mikhail Gorbachev, istovisitParisshortly. Newtechnologies haveledsomepeopletothinkthatwecouidbeturning apage ofthenuclear erain10or20years,attheendofsomeill-defined transitional period. Thisidea,whichisattractive atfirstsight, merely reopens anold debate whichhasnurtured anillusion inmankind -theillusion thatsecurity can beachieved through invulnerabili~. Havewerealized theextenttowhicha would-be aggressor couldturnthisriskysituationtohisownaccount? AttheGenevaConference onDisarmament inJune1984,andthenagainthis year,France madetwoproposals: first,thatthetwosuper-Powers limitthe military usesofspaceatthesametimeastheyreducetheiroffensive nuclear systems; and,secondly, thatmultilateral negotiations strengthen theinternational administration oftheorganization ofspaceforpeaceful uses. Theuseofdevices inspacetosee,listen andcornmunica tecontributeato security; satellites already constitute guarantees forpeaceandcouldfillthis function evenbetteriftheinternational satellite monitoring agency mycountry proposed morethansevenyearsagowereestablished. But,ontheotherhand,let usacknowledge thatthedeployment ofnewtypesofanti-missile oranti-satellite weapons onearthorinspacewouldleadtoanewrace,withitsriskof destabilizing effects. Weseethatpossession ofanti-missile andanti-satellite operational devices byoneofthetwosuper-Powers isviewedasjustification for theother's efforts. Itishightimethatthetwosuper-Powers agreednotto continue inthisdirection, theyshoulddistinguish verywellbetween research, testing anddevelopment.BCr/td A/40/PV.lO 67------_._._----------~~~~~~- (Mr.Dumas,France) Duringthesametime,theConference onDisarmament shouldinourviewset forththeruleslimiting anti-satellite systems. Itshouldalsoestablish real confidence-building measures forspace,strengthen theexisting systemof notification oflaunches ofobjects intospace,and,lastly, extendtothe satellitesofothercountries thebilateral COIIh-nitments already madebytheUnited StatesandtheSovietUnionconcerning theimmunity oftheirobservation satellites. Thoseproposals areintended tobeconstructive andrealistic. Theytakeinto account boththedestabilizing natureofcertain military activities inspaceand thedifficulty ofverifying thedismantling ofsystems already inplace. Letustherefore definethetruenatureofthechallenge inspacesoasto averttheriskofanewarmsrace.But,insodoing,letusnotforgetthemain objective: thereduction oftheoffensive nuclear weapons systems ofthetwomost heavily armedcountries. Asfarasmycountryisconcerned, thePresident oftheFrenchRepublic defined inthisverybodytwoyearsagotheconditions inwhichFrancewouldbe readytoparticipate inthisundertaking. Ourwillingness onthisscorehasnot changed;ithasnotdiminished. Itisinthecontext ofsuchaprocess thatFrancejudgesitnecessary to raiseagainthequestion ofnuclear testing designed tomodeLnize itsdefensive force. Iknowthatmanydelegations consider thisapainful problem forwhicha solution islongoverdue. Werespect theirconcern, butinthecaseofissueslike thiswecannotsettleforfinewordsoranimprecise assessment. Soletusexamine thefacts. IBcr/td A/40/PV.IO 68 (Mr.Dumas,France) ITodateDFrancehascarried outlessthanone-tenth ofthetotalnumberof nuclear testscarried outbytheSoviets andtheAmericans. Asof1974itceased testsintheatmosphere. Ittakeseveryprecaution incarrying outitstests,and thiswasQOnfirmed, inparticular, bytheteamofinternational experts thatwent tothesitelastyear. Noothernuclear Powerdidthisbeforeandnonehasdoneit since. Onlyrecently, inMururoa, thePresident oftheRepublic renewed the invitation heiladextended tothecountries oftheSouthPacific toseefor themselves, attheactualsite,theharmless natureofFrenchnuclear tests. Thoughnotboundbyanynegotiated agreement, Francehasreduced thepowerof itstestsbelowthethreshold of150kilotons, afigurethatt:.heSovietUnionand theUnitedStateshavepresented tothisAssembly forthep~st10yearsasastep deserVing ofthehighestpraise. Ateveryopportunity, Francedemonstrates its goodwill, butitwillnevercompromise itssecurity interests; norwillitrenounce thelegitimate exercise ofitssovereignty, whatever thecosttoit.Continuation ofthetestsisinfactnecessary tomaintain thecredibility ofitsforces. The limitation oftestscouldonlybeunderstood andbemeaningful inthecontext ofan
**Analysis**
The text appears to be a speech or statement from a French diplomat, discussing the topic of disarmament and the reduction of nuclear weapons. The speaker highlights the need for deep cuts in destabilizing offensive weapons while maintaining strategic equilibrium. The text also touches on the topic of space and the use of satellites for peaceful purposes. The speaker emphasizes the importance of establishing rules limiting anti-satellite systems and strengthening international administration of space for peaceful uses.

**Category**
International trade, Science and technology