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126
Flag A
Mr Wilford
Sir D Watson
P.S. n. Rayle
HONG KONG MASS TRANSIT SYSTEM
1.
2.
You asked about Tokyo telegram EXCED 28.
11.55
ECGD have undoubtedly got themselves too deeply involved.
133 with the Japanese, and have left our embassy in Tokyo under
Flag B the same misapprehension. (See Burges Watson's letter to Mason
of 24 May, especially paragraph 6.)
121
Flag &
3.
I spoke to Mr Glaves-Smith on my return. He said he was
equally perturbed and had asked ECGD to send off a dementi.
Mr Fell's telegram to Tokyo is attached.
4.
I agreed with Mr Glaves-Smith that even this was barely
enough. If the Japanese told the Hong Kong Government that we
had been talking seriously about sharing the contract with them (as they might if they felt they were likely to be excluded)
then the almost certain result, given what we know of the Governor's attitude, would be to make Hong Kong go for a multi-
contract solution.
5.
Mr Glaves-Smith therefore arranged for me to be invited
to a meeting between himself, Mr Fell and Lord Limerick on
1 June, to put these points again. I did so. Mr Fell said his
intention had been merely to keep the door open for sharing the contract, if at the end of the day we found we wanted to. It
was, however, agreed that he would speak negatively to Mr Ozu in Vienna, and that DTI would put our embassy in Tokyo straight.
There was some discussion about whether we should assure the
CONFIDENTIAL
/Hong Kon