TNAG-0020-FCO40-56-Facilities-for-US-Forces-1967 — Page 199

HANGAN HARRATION OVER RAR HONG KONG STORY

∙F1) 2011 (108.

115.

The bigger the Vietnam war becomes, the harder it is for the

arderɣit

Unite States to find places to send its weary fighers for rest

and a hange of scene About a quarter million American servicemen came ash rein Hong Kong last year bringing economic gain and political embarrassient to this Chinese relic in the Eritish Imperial cupboard. How the llow the American military is pressing to increase the number of R&R visits, but the British are reluctant to offend China in its present

truculeat now! There are other places in Asia to relax, but Hong Long is favored by the Fentagon because it's well policed, accessible and endowded with plenty of hotels and recreation facilities. The result

is, Hong Kong has become the lagest American R&R center in the far

east.

Peping says American war ships entered Hong Kong harbor three hundred and ninety times last year an all-time record. In this case

there's no reason to doubt the Chinese figures, even though official American confirmation is lacking. When the nuclear powered aircraft carrier, Enterprise, anchored outside Hong Kong Harbor on arch 14 Communist papers here opened a concerted propaganda drive against the fleet's visit, charging that Hong Kong was being used as an American base to fight the war in Vnam.

Six days later, Teping handed the Dritish a formal note its third on the subject threating "grave consequences" if they continued