Mr Weir
CONFIDENTIAL
HKK 243/1
fur
$19
26
ENEVA,
RECEIVED IN REGISTMA KO. 51
DES
· 4 DEC1978
UNHCR CONSULTATIONS ON INDONESE (REI ES
11-12 DECEMBER
1. Mr Kimball (US Embassy) called yesterday and left the attached State Department telegram of instructions (which I have copied separately to Mr Murray, SEAD, HK&GD, UKMIS Geneva and Washington) regarding the forthcoming consultations in Geneva. The Americans wish to see the UNHCR's conference concentrate on the following:
2.
(a)
Resettlement: The US hope countries participating (other than those of first asylum) will announce annual quotas for the admission of Indo-Chinese refugees to their territories in order to allow the UNHCR to make, in advance, well-conceived (rather than ad hoc, as hitherto) plans for the resettlement of these people.
to cope.
(b) Financial contributions: Given the sharp increase in the numbers leaving Vietnam, additional funds would be needed
The UNHCR are, apparently, running a deficit of several millions of dollars. The Americans hope countries participating, particularly those unable to offer resettlement places, will be prepared to announce additional contributions to UNHCR for the latter's programmes in Inco-China.
(c)
The need to discuss in the conference itself, or in the margins, the possibility of "achieving a more orderly out- flow" of refugees from Vietnam.
US Embassies in about 30 countries have been asked by the State Department to act on these instructions, in some cases at Cabinet level, and to urge governments which have not already done do to approach the Vietnamese Government to encourage the latter's attendance at the conference (para 9 of the telegram).
3.
Mr Kimball said that the US delegation to the conference would almost certainly be led by Mr David Newsom, Under-Secretary of State for Political Affairs in the State Department.
4.
I told Mr Kimball of the measures the UK has already taken towards alleviating the refugee problem and of our increased financial contributions to UNHCR. I reminded him of the numbers of Indo-Chinese the UK had already accepted (which amount to more than some other South-East Asian countries had accepted, particularly Japan) and of our responsibilities for refugees and prospective immigrants from other parts of the world: in addition to our intake over the past few years of many thousands from Uganda and Latin America, we had a continuing inflow of the relatives of existing immigrant families. Nevertheless, we wanted to play a constructive part at the forthcoming consultations and we were urgently looking at ways of doing even more to help over the problem in Indo-China We spoke of Hong Kong's particular difficulties with regard to the reception of Vietnamese refugees: Mr Kimball understood these.
15. SEAD