TT MON
CCW Adams Esq
SEAD FCO
Dew
eu
VIETNAM:
1./
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Mr Artem
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96
BRITISH EMBASSY,
HANOI.
2 May 1986
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15 FED ad
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PA VRS "Sevend""
392 си
24/5
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Christian
THE CHINESE PRESENCE
no Rom
A 2770
At the time of last year's revision of the Country Assessment Paper for Vietnam I drew attention to the fact that the level of the Chinese diplomatic presence in Hanoi was hardly "vestigial". The word was changed to "reduced" on the basis of the number of diplomatic staff listed in the Vietnamese Diplomatic Corps list (my letter of 5 August to David Wilson).
2.
Recent information indicates that the Chinese presence may be considerably greater than the published list suggests and that perhaps it is the Vietnamese who choose,in compiling the Diplomatic Corps list, to keep the appearance of a smaller Chinese presence than is actually the case.
1
3. In a recent conversation with the Chinese Ambassador when my wife and I were at their Embassy for dinner, the Ambassador told me that he has 26 officers of diplomatic rank (ie not including drivers, cooks, technical people, etc) and that the "number includes both the Defence and Commercial Sections". Today we received a Note from the Chinese advising that "Mr Cui Zhaosong, Military, Naval and Air Attache of the Embassy of the PRC in the SRV has already arrived in Hanoi and taken up his duties". There are also at least two resident personnel from the Xinhua News Agency.
4.
Discussions with the Chinese reveal that they are subject to restrictions on travel that are not imposed on others. However, the Chinese Ambassador and his wife did go on the recent tour arranged for the Diplomatic Corps to Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang and Dalat.
5.
No-one is quite sure what all these Chinese diplomats do but it is said that between them they read every word
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/that