West Germany said it would accept asuperpower plan to ban medium and shorter-range nuclear
missiles in Europe provided Bonn was allowed to retain its own
shorter-range missiles.
    After six weeks of public wrangling over the so-called
"double-zero" offer, Chancellor Helmut Kohl's coalition finally
said it would agree to an East-West ban on shorter-range
nuclear missiles.
    But in a statement issued after top-level talks, the
government said Bonn wanted the 72 West German Pershing-1a
missiles excluded from an East-West accord -- a demand
diplomats said could produce a snag in the Geneva arms talks.
 Reuter
