On 9 November 1982, the Secretary-General of Western European Union (WEU) circulates the reply by the WEU Council to Assembly Recommendation 382 on disarmament. The Council particularly emphasises its view that the START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) and INF (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces) negotiations represent a major contribution to arms control, stability and peace. But it points out that only mutually agreed reductions will promote security. On the matter of the INF talks, the Council rejects a geographical approach centred exclusively on Europe, advocating instead the ‘global approach’ put forward by the United States. The Council also encourages initiatives to promote negotiations for a complete and verifiable ban on chemical weapons. With regard to the negotiations on mutual and balanced force reductions in Europe (MBFR), it asks the East for clarification of the discrepancies in the data for Warsaw Pact forces. Finally, the Council reaffirms its support for the convening of a conference on disarmament, which it believes could serve as a starting point for more extensive arms control agreements.