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ANNEX II
Copy of a minute (reference COS 935/11/6/8) dated 11th June 1948 from the Secretary. Chiefs of Staff
Committee to the Minister of Defence
(236)
The Chiefs of Staff at their meeting today considered the letter from the Colonial Office circulated to them as COS (48) 70 about a Chinese compromise proposal for the
jurisdiction of Kowloon.
2.
The Chiefs of Staff wish to reiterate their views submitted to the Minister of Defence in General Hollis's minute (Ref. No. COS 758/7/5/8) of 7th May, 1948 and they instructed me to say that the new Chinese proposal is no more acceptable from the military point of view than the previous proposal as it in no way meets the military requirements.
3.
They have no objection to the Colonial Office seeking the views of the Governor, Hong Kong, on the Chinese proposal and have no comment to make on the terms of the draft telegram it is proposed to send. They do not think, however that the final decision can be dependent on the Governor's views alone and they therefore propose to send the attached draft telegram seeking the comments of the British Defence Co-ordination Committee, Far East, If the Chiefs of Staff proposal is concurred in, they hope that the Colonial Office telegram to the Governor, Hong Kong, will be repeated to Mr. Malcolm MacDonald.
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