RESTRICTED
STATED THE ACCEPTANCE OF DOCUMENT 44 ON BEHALF OF THE COMMUNITY, FRANCE (COLMANT) IMMEDIATELY ASKED FOR THE FLOOR: TRAN (COMMISSION)
TOLD THE CHAIR THAT IT COULD NOT GIVE FRANCE THE FLOOR: THE EEC
WAS REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSION BY VIRTUE OF ARTICLES 128 AND 113 OF THE TREATY OF ROME: THE EEC ALONE WAS PARTICIPATING IN THE MFA. LONG (CHAIRMAN, TEXTILES COMMITTEE) SAID THAT A DIVERGENCE OF VIEWS
WITHIN THE COMMUNITY WAS A MATTER FOR THE COMMUNITY AND IT WAS UP
TO THEM TO COME TO A DECISION. HE GAVE FRANCE THE FLOOR. IN HIS
STATEMENT, COLMANT SAID THAT FRANCE WISHED TO CONFIRM ITS POSITION
AS BEING GENERALLY IN FAVOUR OF THE MFA AND FULLY SUBSCRIBED TO THE
STATEMENT WHICH HAD BEEN MADE BY THE COMMUNITY ON 5 JULY. THIS
STATEMENT SHOWED ABJECTIVES, PROVISIONS AND CONDITIONS AND DOCUMENT 44 WAS TOO FAR REMOVED FROM THE KEY ELEMENTS OF THE
COMMUNITY'S STATEMENT OF 5 JULY. FRANCE COULD NOT AGREE TO THE
TEXT OF DOCUMENT 44 AND WOULD NOT BE BOUND BY THE PROVISIONS
OF PARAGRAPHS 5 AND 9 OF THAT DOCUMENT. HE SAID THAT HE WAS
SPEAKING ON SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT
AND ASKED FOR HIS STATEMENT TO BE RECORDED. TRAN (COMMISSION)
ASKED THE CHAIRMAN TO SAY THAT THE STATEMENT WAS NULL AND VOID
AND WOULD NOT DE RECORDED IN THE MINUTES. HE REPEATED THAT
ONLY THE COMMISSION COULD COMMIT THE EEC.
4. WITH VARYING DEGREES OF ENTHUSIASM OR HESITATION JAPAN, HONG KONG, KOREA, MEXICO, AUSTRIA, SWITZERLAND, NORDICS, TURKEY AND THE PHILIPPINES SUPPORTED DOCUMENT 44 (THE TRIPARTITE TEXT). BRAZIL, INDIA, YUGOSLAVIA, COLOMBIA, EGYPT, SRI LANKA, URUGUAY, GUATEMALA, PREFERRED DOCUMENT 43. NEITHER CANADA NOR AUSTRALIA WOULD GO ALONG WITH EITHER TEXT: NEITHER COULD SUPPORT CONCLUSIONS
THAT PROVIDED SOLUTIONS FOR SOME AND NOT OTHERS, AND NOR COULD THEY SUPPORT CONCLUSIONS THAT PREJUDUCED OR RESTRICTED GATT RIGHTS9
CANADA STOOD BY ITS STATEMENT IN MARCH WHICH HAD SAID THAT AMEND-
MENT OF THE MEA WAS REQUIRED AND THAT CANADA HAD PROPOSALS OF
HER OWN TO MAKE AND STOOD READY TO EXAMINE ANY OTHER COUNTRY'S
PROPOSALS. ROMANIA, HUNGARY, SPAIN, AND PAKISTAN WOULD SUPPORT NEITHER TEXT AT THIS STAGE AND URGED A MUCH LONGER TIME BEFORE THE
TEXTILES COMMITTEE WAS NE-CONVENED TO REACH ANY DECISIONS.
--2-- RESTRICTED
15.