CO129-588-24 China- British extra-territorial rights- negotiations with China 23-11-1942 - 1-1-1943 — Page 119

COPY FOR SECRET RECORD IN DEPARTMENT

SECRET

W.M (42) 171st

Collusions

22. 12. 42.

WAR CABINET 171(42)

EXTRACT from CONCLUSIONS of a Meeting of the War Cabinet

held at 10 Downing Street, S.W.1., on

MONDAY, 21st DECEMBER, 1942.

+

191

119

CHINA.

Extra-

Territoriality.

(Previous Reference: W.M. (42)162nd Conclusions, Minute 7.)

17.

The

The War Cabinet had before them a Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (W.P.(42)600) about the Kowloon Leased Territory. Chinese Government were pressing that, as part of the proposed Treaty on Extra-territoriality, we should agree to abandon our position there. We had maintained that the Leased Territory was outside the scope of the Treaty, which concerned only extra-territorial privileges, in Chinese territory proper. The Chinese Government might find it impossible to withdraw from the position which they had taken up. In order that the signature of the Treaty might not be delayed, the Foreign Secretary recommended, in his Memorandum, that we should state that we were prepared to discuss the future of the Leased Territory when victory had been won. His Majesty's Ambassador understood that this solution would be acceptable to the Chinese.

Points made in discussion:-

(1) We might argue that, on the analogy of

the bases which we had leased to the Americans, the Chinese should not object to leasing Kowloon to us, since it was essential for the defence of Hong Kong.

(2) It was pointed out, however, that the

value of Kowloon to us was not limited to defence. Hong Kong's water-supply and airfield were on the leased territory, and the town and dockyards had both spread from the island to the mainland.

(3) THE PRIME MINISTER thought that in this matter we should not go beyond the line to which we had firmly adhered on other occasions, namely, that questions of territorial adjustment could not be considered now and must be left to be raised at the Peace Conference. If necessary, it might be added that we felt this principle should be applied in the case of Kowloon, even though it was not a territorial question in the strict sense.

(4)