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to grant preferences to bona fida applicants and this was still our position. I pointed out that from whit had been naid in the Committee one could began to have a fairly good idea of who the beneficiazias would be under cone of the schemes (I meart, of course, that the OECD countries were likely to be excluded by the USA and probably the Japanese). Public opinion in the United Kingdom
Could not be expected to accept a list of beneficiarice significantly Longer than those of other major donors.
Other countries made atatements which boiled down to the fact that they were waiting to see what the bigger donors would do..
At the lunch Languetin gave us the ugual Swiss line that he hopod that generalised preferences would enable us to solve the problem of special and roverse preferences in a satisfactory manner.
For the USA Cronk had nothing now to say except that if Romania eccodes to GATT and (it is not the pane thing) gets min treatment at some stago in the USA then it is quite likely that they would thon qualify for preferences pretty Woll automatically--but no other "Eastern European country except, of course, Yugoslavia. Cronk also commented on "burdon sharing;" He pointed oub task according to an UNCTAD Study boged on 1968 trade about half the benefits to less developed countries from the U CHAD selime world come from their trade with the USA (no-one van in a poulsion to dispute this but for all I know the Study may have aumed that all possible beneficiariosd recoivo proferences in the USA).
The Japanese repeated that they could not wait too long befowa making up their mind since they wished to put proposal to thoix Diet very goon. If their proposals are not upčcific than thay night not need to declare their proposed beneficiaries till pay Janivmy or February but by then they will nood to tell the Diet whe tarát boneficiaries are to be. They regord, 20 we know, the 77 us tho minimum. They were unlikely to include Eastern Europe because these is a strong lobby in favour of more trade with Communist China and if one adiltted Romania, this lobby would want Communist China in 20 woll.
It was of course pointed out to Ir liyazaki that Communist China had not asked for preferences but, as usual, he was not visibly influenced by any argument or heckling.
I'r Miyazaki gave us no hint that Japan was going to relax tho criterion that there were to bo no proferences for countries Envoking GATT Articlo XXXV against Japan or continuing discriminatory restrictions though he admitted that some "nore libexel officials" hoped that they might be able to extend their profeences to some of the countries involved. He said at the meating, however, that neveral African countries had disenvokeā Article XXXV recently in order to qualify for proferences in Japan.