At the 256th meeting of the Council of Western European Union (WEU), held at ministerial level on 16 and 17 July 1964 in Paris, the delegations discuss the development of East–West relations and particularly analyse the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation between the Soviet Union and the German Democratic Republic (GDR), signed on 12 June 1964. The British Foreign Secretary, Richard Austen Butler, and the French Foreign Minister, Maurice Couve de Murville, note that the USSR is currently preoccupied with internal problems, including its conflict with China and the difficult relations with some satellite countries in Eastern Europe, which are calling for greater independence. The French delegate and his English counterpart underline that the Western countries should take advantage of this situation, for example by developing relations with the countries of Eastern Europe. Concerning the conference on disarmament, Richard Austen Butler states that he believes it is possible to reach agreement with the USSR on nuclear non-proliferation, despite the establishment of a multilateral nuclear force. On this matter, the French minister points out that his government, unclear as to the purpose of the operation, is not taking part in discussions on the subject and that the USSR is opposed to the establishment of such a force.