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CONFIDENTIAL
CYPHER/ CAT A.
IMMEDIATE
HONG KONG,
TO FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
TELEGRAM NUMBER 129
25 FEBRUARY 1970
20 283
CONFIDENTIAL
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ADDRESSED F C O TELNO 129 OF 25 FEBRUARY REPTD FOR INFMN TO
WASHINGTON AND GENEVA.
RECEIVE
REGISTRY.
send to 0.01 as
CREDA U/H 24/2/10
MY TELEGRAM 123: NON-COTTON TEXTILES.
HKX6/04/1
I MUST EXPRESS MY CONCERN OVER THE POSSIBLE IMPLICATIONS
BEHIND THE RECENT EXCHANGE OF CREDA TELEGRAMS WITH WASHINGTON,
THESE PROPOSE A REVIVAL OF THE ARTICLE XIX APPROACH WHICH CAN
HAVE MOST SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES FOR HONG KONG (SEE JORDAN'S
LETTER TO WILFORD OF 20 SEPTEMBER 1969).
2. I WOULD THEREFORE REITERATE MOST STRONGLY MY OPPOSITION TO
PROPOSALS ON THESE LINES. IN THIS CONNECTION I WOULD ALSO
POINT CUT THAT IN 1960 THE CONTRACTING PARTIES TO THE GATT
CONSIDERED ARTICLE XIX DID NOT HOLD THE SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM
OF LOW-COST IMPORTS OF COTTON TEXTILES.
THE GATT WORKING PARTY ON MARKET DISRUPTION REACHED A SIMILAR
CONCLUSION AT LEAST BY IMPLICATION, ANY REVIVAL OF THIS ARTICLE
XIX APPROACH MIGHT THEREFORE BE EXPECTED TO LEAD TO A MORE
RESTRICTIVE ARRANGEMENT WITH GREATLY WEAKENED CRITERIA FOR
DETERMINATION OF SERIOUS INJURY, OR TO THE GENERAL ABANDONMENT
OF THE NEED FOR THE NON-DISCRIMINATORY APPLICATION OF ARTICLE
XIX WHEN IT IS INVOKED. IN EITHER EVENTUALITY THE CONSEQUENCES
FOR HONG KONG'S TRADE (AND NOT ONLY IN THE FIELD OF TEXTILES
OR CONFINED TO U.S. MARKETS), AND ALL THE OTHER REPERCUSSIONS IT
WOULD BRING IN ITS TRAIN, WOULD BE INCALCULABLE.
CONFIDENTIAL
13.