Radio Interview for BBC (visiting Hungary)

Kevin Ruane

Prime Minister, do you think your visit has been a success and what do you think you have achieved?

Mrs. Thatcher

I think it's been a success and I hope very much that my hosts think it's been a success, we've talked very openly, very constructively and I found the talks extremely valuable.

K. Ruane

But what comes next? People are interested in that. Is there any chance of you foreseeing talks with Moscow in any shape or form, either in Moscow or elsewhere?

Mrs. Thatcher

Well, let us digest the results of this visit first. And as you know that we're having something called Hungarian days in London in April, that will be a step in this bilateral relationship between Hungary and Britain. I have no plans to go to Moscow and I don't think you want to jump suddenly from a first step to a great summit. We're not trying to talk about improvements in relations, you have to build it up step by step, you have to try to make each step a certain step and if you're suddenly going to do things then you undo the good work that's been done previously and before ever anyone talks about a summit, we need to have made substantial progress in my view on disarmament talks and need already to have chalked up to our credit, substantial improvement in relations between East and West.

K. Ruane

But how are you going to persuade Moscow, for instance, which is involved, that the problems of missiles in Europe can be solved, you were saying last night that in fact neither East nor West can be expected to dismantle their weapons without their security being ensured and Mr. Lazar did say that Soviet bloc proposals were flexible and fair and a good basis for negotiation. How do you crack that dilemma?

Mrs. Thatcher

Well, as you know the Cruise and Pershing missles are being stationed in response to weapons that have already been stationed by the Soviet Union, namely the SS20s, so they're part of the balance. Now it's a five year programme to station them and if the Soviet Union were to take down some of her SS20s we would not have to put up the complete number of Cruise and Pershings, so that in fact is already one avenue that is open. I think it's a great pity that the Soviet Union walked out of the Geneva conference, I hope she'll come back to that conference because there were a lot of detailed proposals on the table.

K. Ruane

So in fact you're trying … hoping to persuade them to trust you more and to believe in the West's sincerity before one reaches the point of having all these missils in place?

Mrs. Thatcher

We are absolutely sincere, in wanting disarmament, democracies always are, they have so many other things which they would like to spend their money on, particularly the well being and the economic success and prosperity of the people. I think we have to convince the Soviet Union we are sincere in that and of course it's not only visits that influence other people, it's the constant speeches we make, one has reason to believe that on both sides they are watched very carefully. [end p1]

K. Ruane

But as for the West, do you see hope that the West will have grounds for believing in the sincerity of the Eastern bloc?

Mrs. Thatcher

I hope that they too want to get down their weaponry, I hope that having a people who are interested in improving their own economic conditions and circumstances, and having a rising standard of living, I hope that they have a people that want to be able to spend more money on the ordinary things of life and less on armaments. I understand that if you're going into negotiations both sides must feel secure, both sides must keep their self-respect and therefore you've got to go down together, keeping a balance, having it verified that you've kept a balance: now that seems to me a reasonable basis if only we can get the message across. Were not asking anything we're not prepared to give.

K. Ruane

Are your hopes any higher at this moment?

Mrs. Thatcher

I think to be in politics you have to be two things, a little bit optimistic but very realistic. I hope I'm both.

K. Ruane

Thank you.