84
Mi
GM HA?
RESTRICTED
SAVING TELEGRAM
FRCM UKMIS GENEVA TO FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
BY SAG
Sir Frederick Mason
No 135 Saving
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY No.51
2 50CT 1972
20 October 1972
RESTRICTED
NKK 6/8
EUTRAL
Addressed to FCC telegram No 135 Saving of 20 October 1972
Repeated for information to:
UKDEL EEC Tokyo
Washington Ottawa
Copy:
25/X
GATT WORKING PARTY ON TRADE IN TEXTILES
1.
The Working Farty met on 17-18 Cctober under the chairmanship of Long (Director-General) to consider the progress of the Textile Study and the following draft chapters prepared by the Secretariat:
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Structure of the textile industry
Importance of the textile industry to
national economies
Measures of industrial adjustment
Trade barriers and commercial policies
2. The Working Party was preceded by a meeting of the EEC coordina- ting group on the Study, together with the acceding countries. (Ireland was not represented.) Most of this group's discussion turned on draft statements of the Community's commercial policy for textiles and of the objectives of import restraints for inclusion in Chapter 6. The FRG, supported by Italy, led opposition to the inclusion in these statements of any reference to the Community's future intentions or objectives. France gave some support to the Commission's view that the Community should "open a window" on the future but asked for drafting amendments to weaken any implication that a common commercial policy for textiles was close to realisa- tion. The Commission produced the necessary re-drafts overnight and, while these were circulated before the Working Party met, they have not specifically been cleared with the Nine and modified references to (the Commission's) proposed intentions remain. Commission reported that Spinelli had written formally to Long pressing for the inclusion of mmf staple in the Study and copies of his letter were distributed. As previously, it was agreed that the Commission would speak for the Hine when commenting on draft Study chapters.
The
3. The Working Party's meetings were noticeably less well attended than on 18-19 September (my Saving Telegram 120) with a high pro- portion of countries being represented by their permanent missions. There was, however, a strong US contingent led by Jurich which made only one short contribution to the discussion which, while con- structive, was not of any great significance.
Commenting generally on the progress of the Study, Ernst (Commission) insisted on the inclusion of mmf staple and proposed ith iszaðli support) that a short summary of the Study should be
P.A.
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