President Hoping to Discuss Obstacles to Peace at Summit
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WASHINGTON — President Reagan declared Saturday that he hopes for a discussion of obstacles to peace and “how we can remove some of them” when he meets next month in Geneva with Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev.
“I hope that our discussions will contribute to building true peace and guaranteeing a safe path into the 21st Century,” Reagan said in his weekly radio talk. “But whether this comes to pass will depend on the Soviet willingness to address the real sources of tension in the world.”
He made clear that he regards the Soviets as responsible for most of these sources of tension, citing “their conduct in the world, their treatment of their own citizens and their continuing and longstanding arms buildup.” He said Americans want other countries--which he did not name--to “stop trying to expand their power through armed intervention and subversion.”
Emphasizes Human Rights
The President emphasized the human rights issue, a persistent point of contention between Moscow and the West because of Soviet repression of dissidents, particularly Jews.
“Countries which respect human rights are unlikely to unleash war or to impose their will on others,” he said. “That is why we insist that the Helsinki Accords (the 1975 agreement guaranteeing protection of human rights) and other international commitments be observed.”
Reagan said that both countries have a mandate to reduce the danger of conflict by making drastic reductions in the number of nuclear weapons.
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