Letter recounting a meeting between the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs and the British Foreign Secretary regarding NATO’s weapons development. Nuclear weapons should never be employed unless absolutely necessary and instead serve as an intimidation tactic to deter Soviet aggression. The necessity of increasing NATO’s arsenal of conventional weapons to match that of the Soviets was also stressed.

The permanent representative of Italy to NATO offers a summary of the discussion among the NATO members that followed Secretary of State Shultz's briefing. There is a consensus among the member states of the positive effects of the INF treaty to international security.

The document briefly describes the US and Soviet views on the question of SRINF reductions, and discusses the German concerns about the process.

Secretary of State, George P. Schultz analyzes US position following the collapse of the US-Soviet talks in Reykjavik. He discusses credibility of nuclear deterrence, US commitment to Europe and increasing conventional forces.