TNAG-0022-FCO40-58-Facilities-for-US-Forces-1968 — Page 31

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The recent Chinese decision to grant exit visas to members of the staff

in Peking without any significant concession being granted in Hong Kong

tends to support the Governor's view that visits should continue more

or less at the present level. I therefore consider that we should

accept the Governor's recommendation in this sense, subject to the

reservations on the "Enterprise" and on the spacing of nuclear visits.

9. If we are to continue as before, there seems no reason to renego-

tiate the guidelines. For the reasons given by Aashington and Hong

Kong, it would at any rate be undesirable to do so at this juncture.

Sir D. Hopson's strong support for renegotiation was no doubt the

result in part of an understandable anxiety to do everything possible

to break the deadlock over exit visas. Informal discussions with the

Americane would however be useful.

10. If the recommendations in this submission are accepted the pro-

posed programme of visits by American vessels to Hong Kong đuring

August and September (Hong Kong telegram No. 905 to the C.0.) would

nɔ

raise no difficulty in principle. Te do not however wish to do any-

thing which might risk oresting a new situation in which the Chinese

might claim justification for going back on their undertaking about

exit visas. The first ship due under the dew programme is the

"America" (10-16 August). It is a strike oarrier and thus "potentially

controversial" according to the definition of categories of vessels made

by the Governor (paragraph 6 "hove). I have therefore nent a personal

Flag G teleɛram to the Political Adviser in Hong Kong asking if it can be

ascertained whether the Americans could, without grave inconvenience

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