I am sure the gentleman. as we did. made the point that while there is a great desire at the grassroots at all political levels for arms controlI am sure the gentlemans constituents feel that waythe No. 1 question I get in my district when I raise the question of arms control is "Yes. but will we be able to trust the Soviet Union?" That is an essential ingredient to any arms control progress in the long run. And I would say to the Soviet officials who. I hope. will read the transcript of this proceeding that the thing which probably undercuts Soviet credibility at this time more than anything else is the welldocumented violation of the Helsinki accords which grant the right of citizens to emigrate and leave the country if they so desire. I know of no other single such clearcut violation. There is dispute about some of the arms control violations and they can be interpreted subjectively to some extent. There are some real disputes and people can argue on both sides. but it is very hard to argue for the Soviet Union abiding by the spirit or the letter of the Helsinki accords. So. I would think there is a very important linkage and I would think it is in the Soviet Unions own interest. if I could presume to say that. that they reconsider their policy with respect to human emigration. family reunification. because it is not just an atmospheric link to arms control. It is not just atmospheric. These are questions establishing in the political minds of the American people to what extent the Soviet Union can be trusted.
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family reunification emigrate emigration