าน
RECEIVED IN
REGISTRY No.51 13 MAY 1969
HICKOR
73
To:
CONFIDENTIAL
Director of Commerce and Industry, Hong Kong.
From: Counsellor (Hong Kong Affairs), Geneva.
Memorandum No. 74
File No. GVA/10/8/1
Date: 7 May 1969
My memorandum No. 71 of 6 May, 1969.
UNCTAD
Special Committee on Preferences
References to Hong Kong
In paragraph 14 of my memorandum under reference I promised to send you another memorandum giving an account of conversations I had in the corridors on Hong Kong's participation in a preferences scheme.
2. There seems little doubt that the "Hong Kong problem" continues to exercise the minds of officials in potential preference giving countries, particularly in the United States and the EC. On this occasion my main activities shifted from the latter to the former. Tran of the Commission did not attend this meeting and, as I had already arranged through UKDEL, Brussels, to see him when he is in Geneva for the resumed 8th Session of the Trade and Development Beard, I did not think it worthwhile to pursue di Martino and other Commission officials. The U.S. delegation, however, seemed to be in a somewhat more talkative mood than usual and I was able to have some useful conversations with Leary (State Department) and Matthieson (Commerce Department).
United States Position
3. The most significant talk I had was at a lunch given by the U.K. deletion when I was at next to
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conversation is recorded in my minute to Kemmis annexed. This seems to show that the State Department, at least, are well aware that they cannot just shuffle off Hong Kong without creating difficulties. It may well be that at a later stage we will be able to exploit this and possibly have some Tran-like "consultations" with the Americans ⚫n the terms of Hong Kong's participation in their scheme.
4. On the other hand I do not think that we should place too much reliance on the apparent conciliatoriness of Leary in this particular exchange. The U.S. Administration is, as you know, an amalgam of conflicting empires and it would appear that the relatively benevolent attitude of the State Department is certainly not shared by the Commerce Department. In the first place I am sure that the adverse noises about Hong Kong referred to by Leary came mainly from Commerce. This was confirmed by "atthieson who, in a slightly inebriated mood at a drafting group after dinner one evening, told Kemmis that his people considered that Hong Kong was a developed country and should be excluded. This was
CONFIDENTIAL
/uncharacteristic
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