TNAG-0046-FCO40-82-Britain-s-entry-into-EEC-effect-on-trade-with-Hong-Kong-1967 — Page 105

Nor Hewitt.

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CONFIDENTIAL

RGR al.

шикою.

FOREIGN OFFICE, S.W.1.

2 October, 1967

(50)

(MEK

4/2/13)

Dear Bunny,

I am sorry that you have had to wait so long for a reply to your letter HWB 6/18 to Bolland of 21 August about ways of ensuring that Hong Kong remains protected by G.A.T.T. It appears that this letter has been caught up with a series of others on the same subject from the Board of Trade.

2.

I am inclined to share the view of the Hong Kong Government officials as described in your paragraph 3 that there is likely to be a strong Chinese reaction to any attempt to declare Hong Kong independent for the purposes of external trade. With some reason the Chinese could well ask where the distinction lay between independence in external commercial relations and any other form of external relations. As you know, they themselves constantly say that trade and politics cannot beʼdivorced, even though in practice Could we punthalt hey often manage to do so. If the Chinese considered that explain that independence in external commercial relations was a major step

Itowards independence in other spheres as well, then I think we could steps? only expect a strong and adverse reaction from them.

it droi not load on

3. To my mind, the case of membership of the Asian Bank is not quite the same. The Chinese certainly dislike the idea of the Asian Bank and might well object to Hong Kong becoming a member both on grounds of general dislike of the organisation and because member- ship would imply some degree of independent existence for Hong Kong. But in the case of the Bank there was no question of any declaration of financial or commercial independence. The Chinese may dislike G.A.T.T. as an organisation much less than they dislike the Asian Bank but this does not mean that they will take any more kindly to a declaration of trade independence for Hong Kong as a means for continuing the association with G.A.T.T. Whatever the superficial attractions of this idea, I think we should advise strongly against it on political grounds.

4. I am sending a copy of this letter to Audland in the Common Market Department of the Commonwealth Office.

Yours ever,

то

(J.B. Denson

Far Eastern Department

W.S. Carter, Esq., C.V.O.,

Commonwealth Office,

Hong Kong and West Indian Department "C",

Curtis Green.

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ARCHIVES Nɔ. 63 11 OCT/96/

HuB 6/13

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