Fifty-two years ago today, on October 30, 1973 (October 5, 1973 in the lunar calendar), negotiations on conventional arms in Europe began. Since the late 1960s, with the end of the Cold War and the easing of the international situation, various types of disarmament negotiations have begun to emerge. Disarmament negotiations are not only an integral part of the struggle for hegemony between the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, but also reflect the aspirations of most countries and people in the world today for peace and security. There are three types of disarmament negotiations. First, the bilateral negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union mainly involve nuclear weapons (including missiles in Europe); second, the negotiations between European countries mainly involve conventional arms in Europe. Third, the multilateral disarmament negotiations organized by the United Nations have a wide range of topics. Some of the conventional arms negotiations in Europe are bilateral group-to-group negotiations, and some are multilateral negotiations that include all European countries. The United States and Canada, two American countries, are members of NATO and have conventional forces in Europe, so they also participate in European negotiations. There are currently three European disarmament negotiations under way. The first is the Central European disarmament negotiations held in Vienna on October 30, 1973. The United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, the United States and Canada participated in the NATO group; and the Warsaw Pact group of the Soviet Union, Poland, Czechoslovakia and the Democratic Republic of Germany, a total of 11 countries. The Central European disarmament negotiations are now in their 15th year and can be described as the most protracted negotiations in the world. The second is the European Disarmament Conference held in Stockholm since January 1984. Participating countries include all 33 European countries except Albania, as well as the United States and Canada, a total of 35 countries. The first phase of its meeting ended in September 1986. The third negotiation is attended by 16 NATO member states and 7 Warsaw Pact member states. Preparatory meetings are being held, and formal negotiations will begin at the end of 1988. The three disarmament negotiations, although different in scope, mandate, and participating members, are actually interrelated. Therefore, from a general perspective, the history of European disarmament negotiations can be roughly divided into two stages. The first stage was from 1973 to 1986, which was characterized by ineffectiveness and procrastination. After 1986, the second stage took the conclusion of the Stockholm Agreement by the European Commission as a turning point, showing signs of success. However, the realization of specific results will still be a long process.