- STRANA Le talks na nana 2 matka vara i muskaat mengala ak
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HANOI
TO DESKBY 16180OZ FCO
OF 161715Z DECEMBER 89
TELNO 698
CONFIDENTIAL
HKB
243
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
ES
INDE
INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG
(517)
04 JAN 1990
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ction Bakën
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126477 MDHIAN 9521
YOUR TELNO 427: VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE: MR MAUDE'S MEDIA INTERVIEW
1. I CALLED ON LE THO ON THE MORNING OF 15 DECEMBER AT HIS REQUEST AND ON VU KHOAN, ASSISTANT MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS ON THE AFTERNOON OF 15 DECEMBER AT MY REQUEST (ALTHOUGH THE FACT THAT HE MADE THE RUNNING AND WAS, AS REPORTED IN
MY TELNO 697, WAS CLEARLY UNPREPARED FOR MY DEMARCHE, SUGGESTS THAT HE MAY HAVE THOUGHT THAT THE CALL WAS AT HIS INITIATIVE).
2. BOTH DISUCSSIONS FALL WITHIN THE REALM OF DIPLOMATIC EXCHANGES: IF THE CONTENTS WERE TO BE REVEALED TO THE MEDIA, THE VIETNAMESE WOULD HAVE A LEGITIMATE CAUSE FOR COMPLAINT. QUITE APART FROM THAT, I THINK THAT THERE WOULD BE NO ADVANTAGE AT ALL TO HMG IN REVEAL-
ING THE CONTENT.
3. BOTH LE THO AND VU KHOAN LED OFF BY COMPLAINING ABOUT THE AMOUNT
OF PUBLICITY WHICH HAD ATTENDED AND ARISEN FROM THE REPATRIATION EXERCISE. I ALLOWED LE THO TO RABBIT ON FOR SOME TIME BEFORE I TOLD
HIM THAT I HAD HEARD MORE THAN ENOUGHT FROM THE VIETNAMESE SIDE
ABOUT ALLEGED BREACHES OF THE AGREEMENT IN RELATION TO PUBLICITY. I TOLD HIM THAT IT WAS THE VIETNAMESE SIDE WHICH HAD FLAGRANTLY BREACHED THE UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN US BY SHOWING THE TEXT OF
THE AGREED MINUTE TO A BRITISH JOURNALIST (ROGER MATTHEWS OF THE FINACIAL TIMES), AND THAT IT WAS THE VIETNAMESE SIDE WHICH HAD, DESPITE LE THO'S OWN BOAST THAT JOURNALISTS WERE BEING PREVENTED FROM ENTERHING VIETNAM AT THIS TIME, GRANTED VISITS TO A LARGE NUMBER, WHO HAD THEN FLOCKED IN TO HANOI
AND WERE MAKING LIFE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR THIS EMBASSY. I WENT ON TO SAY THAT WELL BEFORE THE EVENT, I HAD ASSURED HIM THAT THERE WOULD BE INEVITABLY MASSES OF PUBLICITY AND THAT, GIVEN THAT THERE WAS NOTHING TO HIDE, THE VIETNAMESE SIDE SHOULD WELCOME IT INSTEAD OF TRYING TO PRETEND THAT NOTHING HAD HAPPENED.
་
4. VU KHOAN HAD OBVIOUSLY HEARD OF MY SENTIMENTS. HE RAISED THE
QUESTION OF PUBLICITY BUT SEEMED READY TO ACCEPT MY LINE OF ARGUMENT. (PARAGRAPH 4 OF MY TELNO 697 SHOULD HAVE MADE IT CLEAR THAT IT REFERRED TO MY DISCUSSION WITH VU KHOAN, NOT TIN). I
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