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To: Director of Commerce and Industry, Hong Kong.
From: Crunsellor (Hong Kong Affairs), Geneva.
Memorandum No. 115/69
File No. GVA/10/8/1
161
Date: 12 November 1969
My memorandum No. 104 of 20 October 1969.
O.E.C.D.
Ad Hoc Group on Preferences and Trade Committee
M
5 November to
{
The Ad Hoc Group met again from 3
finalise its Report to the Trade Committee (TC.Pref.(69)22).
It emerged as TC(69)10 (copy enclosed) which became the main
item on the Agenda for the Trade Committee which met An
6 and 7 November.
In view of the apportionment of my time
I did not consider it worthwhile to attend the Ad Hoc Group
meeting but I went to Paris for the Trade Committee meeting.
New U.S. and Japanese Submissions
2. The main new element introduced into the proceedings
during the week was the tabling of a revised United States'
submission following President Nixon's speech in Latin America
on 31 October.
I enclose a copy of this, together with extracts
from President Nixon's statement. The Japanese also tabled a
completely new submission in the Trade Committee which was
based on tariff quotas along EEC lines (copy also enclosed).
3. The United States' submission came as a complete surprise,
in view of its apparent liberality, not only to other
delegations but to their own delegation as well. The tale
goes that President Nixon was given a list of possible options
and, to the delight of the State Department, chose one near the
top of the list. Nevertheless, however that may be, the
submission is extremely clever in that it could if properly
handled not only restore the U.S. position with the developing
countries, especially the Latin Americans, but also serve to
trump the EEC. This latter must be particularly pleasing to
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/the U.S.