CONFIDENTIAL
3-
DSR 11C
Disadvantages
8. Any worthwhile resolution would fail, because of a
Soviet veto if not for lack of nine supporting votes.
9. Vietnam, having decided on the mass expulsion of
ethnic Chinese for national and/or ideological reasons,
would pay no attention whatsoever to any criticism at
the Security Council. Thus the aim at 3(a) above would
not be achieved.
10.
A Security Council debate would be unlikely to have
any significant effect upon the willingness of other
countries to accept refugees (paragraph 3(b) above).
11. The debate might be exploited to our disadvantage
by other countries wishing to discuss Palestinian and
Rhodesian refugee problems, and used as a
precedent to call for further Security Council debates on
those and other refugee problems.
12. If Dr Waldheim had not organized the special
conference requested by the Prime Minister, he would either
regard a Security Council debate as a substitute for it,
or he would feel inhibited by a vetoed resolution from
proceeding with it.
13.
A debate would turn into an East/West confrontation.
/The re
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