:
مه
MA. Gamunana
now
Would you please proceed
Minister of State
Visits of U.W. Warships to Hong Kong
You may remember that on March 21st the Chinese handed to H.M. Chargé d'Affaires in Peking a Note
protesting against the use of Hong Kong by U.S. naval vessels and calling upon H.M. G. to stop providing Hong Kong to the United States as "a base of operation for its war of aggression against Vietnam". Mr. Hopson, our Chargé d'Affaires in
Peking, reported that both the tone of the Note and the method of its delivery (by a relatively junior official) had every appearance of a routine operatio
being done for the record. We therefore decided to send a pretty routine, unpolemical reply, simply repeating what we had said to the Chinese in replies to similar Notes in the past. This was done.
2. But we did feel, and the Foreign Office agreed, that the figures for U.S. naval visits to Hong Kong needed careful watching. We therefore telegraphed
to Hong Kong as in No. 77 (flag A) pointing out that there had been a steady increase in visits since 1964; that the 1966 level was itself higher than the 20% increase over the 1964 level which we had regarded as acceptable; and asking the Governor for an assessment of the position and for his view on the question whether more precise arrangements to control the number of visits should be taken up with the Americans.
3. The Governor replied as in No. 80 (flag B). He agrees that we must aim to keep the total number of visits for 1967 at no more than the 1966 level; and said he expects no difficulty in working out. arrangements for this with the Americans through the local liaison machinery. I think that on this point we can accept what he proposes,
4. But our examination of this problem as a result of the Chinese Note of March 21st has given rise to another aspect, namely the question of publicity. The background to this, and our proposals for dealing with it, are summarised in paragraphs 3 and 4 of Mr. Hall's minute at No. 87. May we have your agreement to the proposals in Mr. Hall's paragraph 4?
Minister
Aftale
M
accordingly. Aas agres Sadden 25/4 адмо обре
1125/4
ANG.
(A.N. Galsworthy) 20th April, 1967