X
DRAFT
AIDE MEMOIRE
In their Aide Memoire of the 18th June 1969, the Govern-
ment of India drew attention to the change in Hong Kong's
arrangements for the import of unmanufactured tobacco, as a
result of which a preferential rate of duty which had existed
previously was eliminated except in the case of Malawi.
H.M.G. invite the attention of the G.0.1. to the
correspondence on this question exchanged between the Counsellor
for Hong Kong Affairs on the U.K. Mission to the GATT and the
Resident Representative of India to the GATT in December 1968.
In his letter of 18th December 1968, the Counsellor set out at
some length the position of the Hong Kong Government in this
matter and in a subsequent letter dated 23rd January 1969, he
confirmed that his Government had seen and endorsed his state
ment.
H.M.G. are unable to accept that this action by Hong Kong
was contrary to the U.K./India Trade Agreement 1939.
By
signing the Geneva 1967 Protocol, of which the Hong Kong
concession on unmanufactured tobacco formed part, the G.0.1.
accepted the consequential changes in any preferential margins
to which India may have been entitled under the Trade Agreement.
While expressing their regret, if the G.0.1. Consider they were
given insufficient information about the details or inadequate
notice that the concession would be part of the Hong Kong offer
H.M.G. maintain that it is not open to the G.O.I. to rely on
the provisions of section 8 of the 1939 Agreement in order to
question the implementation of a Kennedy Round concession which
cannot be divorced from the general multilatgal settlement,
ex
i
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