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TO PRIORITY FCO TELNO. 139 OF 26 JANUARYĺINFO PRIORITY TO UKREP BRUSSELS UKMIS GENEVA SAVING TO COPENHAGEN DUBLIN THE HAGUE PARIS
LUXEMBOURG ROME BRUSSELS
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UK PEP BRUSSELS TELNO, 226 TO YOU AND TELEPHONE CONVERSATIONS STATHAM/LAM (DTI) : RESTRAINTS ON NON-COTTON TEXTILES FROM HONG
KONG
1. STATHAM HAD AN OPPORTUNITY OF DISCUSSING THIS QUESTICH BRIEFLY
WITH HANEMANN (DEPUTY SECRETARY, FOREIGN TRADE, MINISTRY OF ECONOMY) LAST NIGHT, AND CALLED BY APPOINTMENT TODAY ON ELSON, HANEMANN'S DEPUTY, BOTH, AND ESPECIALLY ELSON, WERE A GOOD DEAL MORE OPEN- MINDED AND LESS COMBATIVE THAN FRIEDRICH (MY TELNO. 194) WHILST MAINTAINING THE SUBSTANCE OF THE GERMAN POSITION.
2. STATHAM SAID WE WERE CONCERNED LEST AN OVERALL APPROACH TO THE QUESTION OF LIMITING IMPORTS FROM HONG KONG BY THE COMMUNITY SHOULD
LEAD TO AN EXCESSIVELY ILLIBERAL PATTERN, SET A BAD EXAMPLE, AND RISK PREJUDICING DISCUSSIONS IN GATT. AS THE GERMANS KNEW, WE
BELIEVED THAT IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT RESTRICTIONS ON A COMMUNITY BASE
SHOULD CONFORM TO THE PRINCIPLES WHICH THE COMMUNITY WOULD LIKE TO
SEE INTERNATIONALLY AGREED.
3. HAHEMANN REHEARSED THE INTERNAL POLITICAL DIFFICULTIES. IN VIEW
OF THEIR GENERALLY LIBERAL ATTITUDES TO TRADE, IT HAD BEEN A PARTICULARLY DIFFICULT DECISION FOR THE GERMANS. BUT IMPORTS FROM
HONG KONG HAD RISEN ALARMINGLY LAST YEAR AND SOME ACTION HAD TO
BE TAKEN. HE MENTIONED THAT (AS IS REPORTED IN TODAY'S GERIAAN PRESS) CRUENER, THE NEWLY APPOINTED STATE SECRETARY IN THE MINISTRY OF THE ECONOMY, HAD YESTERDAY CONFIRMED TO A MEETING OF THE GERMAN TEXTILE MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION (GESAMTTEXTIL) THAT THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT SUPPORTED THE PROPOSALS MADE IN THE COMMUNITY FOR
NEGOTIATIONS WITH HONG KONG. GRUENER, INICIDENTALLY, ALSO SAID THAT
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WAS NOT IN FAVOUR OF A WORLD TEXTILE
AGREEMENT SUCH AS HAD BEEN ADVOCATED BY EUROPEAN TEXTILE INDUSTRIES,
4. STATHAM SAID THAT IF THE GERMANS ARGUED THAT THEY WERE NO LESS
ENTITLED THAN WE WERE TO SEEK RESTRAINTS ON IMPORTS FROM HONG KONG,
WE WOULD FIND IT DIFFICULT TO DISAGREE: BUT WE HAD NEGOTIATED A
/SELECTIVE AGREEMENT
CONFIDENTIAL