CYPHER/CAT A
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18
830)
PRIORITY HONG KONG TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
TELNO. 2001
20. SEPTEMBER 1968
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ADDRESSED COMMONWEALTH OFFICE AS MY TELEGRAM NO. 2001 DATED 20TH
SEPTEMBER REPEATED FOR INFORMATION TO PEKING.
829.
PA
ANG
MY TELEGRAM NO. 2000 : GREY.
FOLLOWING IS EXTRACT FROM CATER'S REPORT:
AT THIS STAGE I SAID THAT WE WERE DELIGHTED THA
RECEIVED IN
AIVES No. 63 23 SEP1968
HWA 3/2
VISAS HAD NOW
BEEN ISSUED TO ALL THE OLD PEKING MISSION STAFF, AS INDEED CONTACT
HAD PROMISED THAT THEY WOULD BE. CONTACT WAS CLEARLY TICKLED BY THIS
AND RAMBLED ON AT SOME LENGTH TO THE EFFECT THAT IT WAS A GOOD THING
THAT ALL QUOTE THE OLD PROBLEMS UNQUOTE HAD NOW BEEN SETTLED. THIS
PROBLE
GAVE ME AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY TO SAY THAT THIS WAS TRUE EXCEPT,
OF COURSE, FOR THE OUTSTANDING CASE OF ANTHONY GREY, THE REUTERS
CORRESPONDENT. 1 THEN WENT ON TO SAY THAT I HAD BEEN THINKING THE
MATTER OVER RECENTLY: WE WERE AWARE THAT GREY HAD NOT BEEN WELL IN
RECENT WEEKS AND IN SPITE OF CONSIDERABLE PRESSURES HAD DONE OUR
BEST TO CURB PUBLICITY ON THIS RATHER EMOTIONAL MATTER. ALTHOUGH
CLEARLY DIFFICULTIES WERE INVOLVED, I WONDERED WHETHER IT WOULD BE
POSSIBLE TO OBTAIN GREY'S RELEASE IF, SAY, WE WERE TO CONSIDER
RELEASING HSUEH PING. CONTACT REACTED VERY STRONGLY TO THIS AND
INTERRUPTED SAYING THAT THIS WOULD BE A VERY SILLY THING TO DO. I
TRIED TO CONTINUE MY EXPLANATION BUT AGAINST THE GREATEST OF OPPO-
SITION: CONTACT CONTINUALLY BUTTED IN, SAYING FINALLY THIS WOULD BE
QUITE STUPID OF US TO THINK IN THESE TERMS. ON ASKING HIS REASONS,
HE SAID WITHOUT HESITATION THAT IT WOULD BE AN OPEN INVITATION TO
GRAB BRITISH PEOPLE IN CHINA AND TO HOLD THEM AS HOSTAGES IN ORDER
TO FORCE OUR HAND ON OTHER MATTERS: THAT TO SHOW INTEREST OF THIS
SORT WOULD CLEARLY LEAD TO DEMANDS FOR A GREAT DEAL MORE THAN THE
RELEASE OF HSUEH. IN ANY EVENT, CONTACT SAID, HSUEH WAS NOT THE
A
PRICE PEKING WANTED FOR GREY. WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY AROSE I SAID THAT
23.9.
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/WE HAD
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