CONFIDENTIAL
INWARD TELEGRAM
TO THE COMMONWEALTH OFFICE (The Secretary of State)
FROM HONG KONG (Sir D. Trench)
Ro
18 May, 1967.
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#1 11452
Cypher D.
J
368 3 Mar. 1. Vect. 55
Xt.is
16)
IMMEDIATE
CONFIDENTIAL
No. 636.
Addressed Repeated
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警要
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to Commonwealth office.
"Brussels (for Martin) No. M. 322.
The Hague No. M.323.
"U.K. Mission Geneva (for Jones)
No. M. 324.
" Board of Trade. (Please pass IMMEDIATE
to all).
Export of cotton textiles to the Benelux.
Benelux request under Article 3.
As our past experience has been that the local
Consuls-General are inadequately briefted on these matters, we should not wish to approach them and should therefore be grateful if Benelux representatives in London could be informed that the Hong Kong authorities
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(a) Accept their request for consultations under Article 3 of the long term arrangement.
(b) Will enter into consultations as soon as the Note
has been received and studied here.
(c) Will, as usual, negotiate directly with the Benelux Governments and would welcome a Benelux negotiating team here in the immediate future,
question the wax for
(d) Protest against the imposition of import restrictions,
prior to the consultations and would point out that the situation envisaged, under paragraph 2 of Article 3, should not arise, provided the Benelux Governments keep their requests for consultations confidential, as the shipping time to Rotterdam is approximately 30 days by which time the consultations should have begun.
(Passed to D.S.A.0. for
The Hague and Geneva:
International Trade Distribution
repetition to Brussels,
copies to B.O.T.)
Wdeoch
Copies sent to:-
Board of Trade
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Mr. Phillips
Cablegram Section
Hong Kong Government
Office
Mr. Sedgwick
CONFIDENTIAL