14/381 Aun
AL.
Ref: CR/BIC 1105/1 XII
CONFIDERTIM!
Report by A.R. on a Visit to Tokyo on 15th and 16th June 1971
24 JUN 1971
Japanese G.P.S.
A record of my discussions with Japanese officials in Tokyo is under preparation in the Embassy. I checked a first draft before I left and it is going in the bag tomorrow. A telegram summarising events should be received today.
2.
The talks were predictably inconclusive, but I believe they were useful. This is certainly the opinion of Wakefield, the Commercial Counsellor who, despite the fact he was concurrently Charge d'Affairs in the absence of both the Ambassador and the Minister, gave me unstinting assistance. The Embassy's ability to cope with the preference issue had been weakened by the recent posting of both the First Secretary and his assistant who had been dealing with it, and so for that reason amongst others, Wakefield was grateful for assistance and a first-hand briefing on our position.
3.
The first encouraging thing about the meeting with the Japanese was that they had agreed to hold it. The Embassy had been pressing for such an opportunity since the autumn of 1970 and had met polite stalling on each occasion.
The change in heart was due, apparently, to several factors, including :
1
(a)
the recent (and as yet unacknowledged) letter from Mr. Heath to Nr. Sato;
(b)
lir. Sato's statement in the Diet debate on Hong Kong's inclusion;
(c)
4.
(d)
(•)
the compromise agreement reached at Economic Ministerial level in Tokyo or a two-phase scheme with delayed inclusion of Hong Kong, which softened M.I.T.I. resistance;
the intention to seek Cabinet endorsement of the compromise arrangement on or about 20 June;
Japanese awareness that their Foreign Minister would be put under personal pressure to make a statement on Hong Kong's position at the Anglo/ Japanese talks in London last week.
The second encouraging thing was that despite doubts which had been expressed by H.F.A. officials when they agreed to talk, in the end H.I.T.I. was represented by the Head of their International Economic Division, Mr. Kunega. This probably underlines the weakening of their resistance to Hong Kong's inclusion - it will be recalled they promised Japanese industry in 1970 that Hong Kong would be out - although it would be naive to assume they will not still fight for a long list of exclusions.
5./