CONFIDENTIAL
FM KUALA LUMPUR
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO 154
OF 08110OZ MARCH 89
RE FILE
TRANSFERRED
CONFIDENTIAL
INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG, UKMIS GENEVA
MicD 243/9
ніко
(B)
013261
MDHIAN 5812
COP
TOP COPY Q DIST ?
INFO PRIORITY BANGKOK, HANOI, WASHINGTON, CANBERRA, OTTAWA INFO PRIORITY TOKYO, PEKING
INFO ROUTINE JAKARTA, SINGAPORE, MANILA, UKMIS NEW YORK, PARIS
FM UK/HK DELEGATION
MY TELEGRAM NO 148: PREPCON ON INDO-CHINA REFUGEES: DAY 2
SUMMARY
SUCCESS. FULL AGREEMENT ON DRAFT DECLARATION AND COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF ACTION (CPA). VIETNAM'S DIFFICULTIES MORE COSMETIC THAN SUBSTANTIVE. WAY NOW OPEN FOR SUCCESSFUL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE IN JUNE IN GENEVA.
DETAIL
2./ OVERNIGHT, IT EMERGED THAT THE VIETNAMESE DELEGATION HAD COME WITH INSTRUCTIONS NOT TO PREVENT THE SUCCESS OF THE PREPCON. THEIR FOUR TEXTUAL AMENDMENTS TO THE CPA TURNED OUT ON INSPECTION TO BE MORE COSMETIC THAN SUBSTANTIVE. AFTER DISCUSSION IN THE FRIENDS OF THE CHAIR'' GROUP. IN WHICH WE WERE ACTIVE, FULL AGREEMENT WAS REACHED ON THEM AND OTHER MINOR AMENDMENTS BY FRANCE AND THE US WITHOUT DIFFICULTY.
3. THE ONLY DRAMA OCCURRED WHEN VIETNAM BAULKED AT AN ASEAN/US TEXT PROPOSING THAT THE PREPCON AGREE TO THE INTRODUCTION OF A REGION WIDE CUT OFF DATE (14 MARCH 1989) AFTER WHICH ALL
VBP ARRIVALS WILL BE SUBJECT TO SCREENING. THIS WAS
RESOLVED WHEN THAILAND AND MALAYSIA WITHDREW THE PROPOSAL
ON THE BASIS THAT THEY WOULD ANNOUNCE THEIR DECISION UNILATERALLY AFTER THE PREPCON HAS CONCLUDED. (WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE MAY BE SOME SLIPPAGE IN THE PLANNED DATE OF 14 MARCH).
4.
AT 1640, THE CHAIRMAN WAS ABLE TO RECONVENE THE MEETING IN PLENARY WHICH ENDORSED THE DRAFT DECLARATION AND CPA (FAX TO FCO AND HONG KONG BY BAG TO UKMIS GENEVA AND HANOI AND BANGKOK)
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