U.K. MAY REVISE E.L.D.O. STAND

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31082, 10 June 1966, Page 11

U.K. MAY REVISE E.L.D.O. STAND

(N.Z.PA. Reuter—Copyright) PARIS, June 9. Britain’s partners in the European space programme hope to persuade her today to reconsider her decision to withdraw from the European Launcher Development Organisation.

Britain might reconsider its decision to pull out if its partners agreed to spread the burden of costs more evenly, said a well-informed British source today. The British Aviation Minister would ask the six other nations taking part in the project their views at the ministerial meeting opening tomorrow. The source denied that the British withdrawal announcement had been a manoeuvre to force the other six countries to think again about sharing the costs. But at the same time it was acknowledged that some E.L.D.O. nations had indicated sjnce the week-end that they might be ready to put the project on a different financial basis. In these changed cireum-

stances, the source said, it : was only natural that the British Government should be willing to listen to its partners’ latest thinking at tomorrow’s meeting. For the time being, the i Government stood by its withdrawal decision —but, the source added, it could have second thoughts, depending on the outcom > of the ministerial talks. There was no immediate confirmation of reports that the United States had offered to help the project, but the source said this would be in line with America’s known view that the E.L.D.O. project complements—and does not rival—its own space projects. Yesterday, American officials in Washington said that ! the United States was ready I and willing to co-operate in the E.L.D.O. space project. They said the United States had always been willing to support ths project and that this offer was renewed recently. The officials could not specify whether the renewed offer had been made since Britain announced her withdrawal. The other countries in the scheme are France. West Germany. Italy, Belgium, Holland and Australia.