RECORD OF EPC POLICY PLANNING GROUP MEETING, BRUSSELS 19 JULY

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Summary

1. The EPC Policy Planning Group met on 19 July, the agenda, the

oral report and list of participants are attached. The group agreed

to forward to the Political Committee the paper on 'EC Economic and

Commercial Strategy for India and the Sub-Continent'. The German

paper on Asian NIES will also be put up, but as a national paper

only.

EC Economic and Commercial Strategy for India and the Sub-Continent

2.

The UK thanked partners for their comments which had been as far

as possible incorporated into the paper. The Commission complained

about the final tiret of paragraph 27 which recommended an

instruction to Commercial Counsellors and the Commission

representative in New Delhi aimed at focussing future EC action along the lines recommended in the paper. It was agreed to drop the

recommendation. Spain, The Netherlands and Denmark all emphasised

that they saw no need to establish new institutions and the UK noted

that the paper stated that there was scope under existing EC/India

arrangements for the further action recommended by the paper.

Denmark also commented that the paper was too harsh towards the

India position in GATT. The UK disagreed but accepted the removal

of two of the three references to 'hardline' in paragraph 9. It was agreed to send the paper to the Political Committee with the request that it should also be forwarded to the Asia working group and COREPER. (Final version of the paper attached.)

Asian NIES

3. The FRG explained that they had substantially rewritten this paper to take account of the differences between the Asian NIEs,

well as the different economic situations of EC member states. delegations agreed that the paper was more balanced but the Commission and the UK disliked the implied comparison of the

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