UN General Assembly
1961

90. A further lesson from the resumption of these tests relates to disarmament generally. A lot of the essential requirements of a treaty for a definite arrangement on nuclear tests are also applicable to disarmament generally. Nuclear tests are a rather easier field in which to reach agreement, particularly nuclear tests in the atmosphere, because it is easier to detect nuclear explosions. Provided one can have sufficient observation sites, it is possible to tell whether an explosion in the atmosphere has taken place. Therefore, all the elaborate, detailed machinery that is necessary for general disarmament can be modified to some extent when we are attempting to inspect nuclear explosions in the atmosphere—provided, as I say, there are adequate facilities for making the observations. 91. But the provisions for inspection and control which are essential for nuclear tests are equally essential for disarmament generally, and they are