CYPHER CAT A
CONFIDENTIAL
ROUTINE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
TELEGRAM NUMBER 115
CONFIDENTIAL.
MIPT.
вору
32
TOP COPY
TO HONG KONG
27 FEBRUARY 1970
(HONG KONG)
booky sear on persona
banks to M. Sellers
with 144
не
FOLLOWING IS TEXT OF COVERING LETTER, BEGINS.. J
RECEIVED IN
REGISTRY No.51
B: 1970
|HAK 6/304/1
1 ENCLOSE A NOTE ON THE PROBLEM OF IMPORTS OF NON-COTTON TEXTILES WHICH DURING OUR TALK ON 28 JANUARY YOU WERE GOOD ENOUGH TO SAY YOU WOULD CONSIDER. I UNDERSTAND PERHAPS BETTER THAN MOST THE PROBLEM WHICH YOU FACE. BUT I DO WONDER WHETHER SOLUTIONS COULD NOT BE FOUND WHICH RAISED FEWER DIFFICULTIES FOR YOUR TRADING
PARTNERS AND FOR PROGRESS TOWARDS FREER TRADE THAN THE ONES THE
U.S. ARE NOW PROPOSING. AS THINGS ARE GOING I SEE A RISK OF SERIOUS
DAMAGE TO THE SYSTEM OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE DISCIPLINE WHICH HAS
DONE SO MUCH TO PROMOTE WORLD TRADE AND PROSPERITY. I KNOW WE BOTH
WANT TO PREVENT THIS.
THE EXPORTING COUNTRIES ARE TAKING UP AN ATTITUDE WHICH YOU
PROBABLY REGARD AS UNHELPFUL BECAUSE THE U.S. GOVERNMENT ARE SEEKING
TO ESTABLISH RESTRAINTS ON ALMOST ALL NON-COTTON TEXTILES WHEN
NO CONVINCING EVIDENCE HAS BEEN PRODUCED WHICH SHOWS THAT THE AMERICA
TEXTILE INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE IS THREATENED WITH SERIOUS INJURY.
SUCH RESTRAINTS WOULD HAVE THE EFFECT OF TAKING AN IMPORTANT SEGMENT
OF WORLD TRADE OUT OF THE MARKET-PLACE, PERHAPS PERMANENTLY, AND
SO WOULD SET BACK THE STEADY PROGRESS OF THE LAST TWENTY YEARS IN
FREEING TRADE IN MANUFACTURES FROM QUANTITATIVE CONTROL. THE
REAL RISK IS OF THROWING THE MACHINE INTO REVERSE AND OF SETTING
A PRECEDENT FOR ARBITRARY IMPORT RESTRICTIONS ON WHOLE AREAS OF
INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
IF, HOWEVER, YOU WERE INSTEAD TO SEEK REMEDIES FOR SPECIFIC
CONFIDENTIAL
LAST
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