In any
further communication on this subject, please quote
кив
No.
F 7941/60/10
and address-—
not to any person by name
but to--
The Under-Secretary of State,"
Foreign Office,
London, S.W.1.
144
3354P
35°
4
FOREIGN OFFICE
137
S.W.1.
30th January, 1936.
Sir,
I am directed by Mr. Secretary Eden to refer to
Colonial Office letter No. 53548/35 of the 18th December,
1935, regarding the misdescription of a consignment of
arms despatched from Italy via Hong Kong to Canton. It
appears likely that the misdescription in this case was
made deliberately in order either to circumvent the
prohibition imposed on the export of arms from Austria
by the terms of the Treaty of St. Germain-en-Laye or to
enable the arms to be exported from Italy without a
licence issued by the Italian Government. Mr. Eden is,
however, of opinion that no useful purpose would be served
by instructing His Majesty's Representatives at Rome and
Vienna to bring the facts of this case to the notice of
the governments to which they are accredited.
2. It is observed that in paragraph 5 of his despatch
the Officer Administering the Government of Hong Kong
requests directions for dealing with similar cases which may
arise in the future. Prima facie it seems undesirable that
consignments of arms, even though demonstrably in transit,
should be permitted to proceed to China from Hong Kong without
question when they have entered the colony under a false
description; for it would appear to open the way to the export
The Under-Secretary of State,
Colonial Office,
of/
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