U.S. arms negotiators Monday formally presented the Soviets with President Reagan`s proposal for a phased elimination of all medium-range nuclear weapons within three years.
The proposal was submitted at meeting involving all leading negotiators on both sides at the Soviet delegation offices.
Official sources said there also would be a meeting later Monday of subsidiary negotiating groups on Intermediate Nuclear Forces, which deal specifically with medium-range weapons.
In Moscow, the official Soviet news agency Tass dismissed the latest proposal as ”a propaganda stratagem.”
”Judging by first press reports, the reply does not go farther than repeating the well-known U.S. nonconstructive stand in this matter, which is of major importance to the destiny of the world,” Tass said.
Reagan first sent his proposal in a weekend letter to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, officials in Washington said.
It represents a reply to Gorbachev`s sweeping proposal on Jan. 15 for the elimination of all nuclear arsenals by the year 2000.
Gorbachev said a beginning could be made by getting rid of all medium-range weapons in Europe, but he did not mention Soviet triple-warhead SS-20 missiles in Asia.
The Soviet leader also demanded a freeze on British and French nuclear arsenals and a commitment by the U.S. not to provide new missiles to any country.
Gorbachev did not link an interim Intermediate Nuclear Forces agreement to a scrapping of the U.S. Strategic Defense Initiative antimissile program, also known as ”Star Wars.”
But the space-based defense program must be abandoned if there is to be progress on reducing strategic long-range nuclear weapons by 50 percent, an objective set at the U.S.-Soviet summit last November, Gorbachev said.
Washington officials said the U.S. proposal insists on inclusion of Soviet missiles in Asia as part of a phase-out of all medium-range arms.
It further rejects Gorbachev`s demand for a British and French nuclear freeze and for the U.S. to promise not to make new missiles available to its allies.
American senators monitoring the Geneva talks told reporters two weeks ago that U.S. delegates cannot negotiate for Britain and France. They also said America cannot break existing agreements to supply Britain with new Poseidon submarine missiles.
