TNAG-0298-FCO40-334-Entitlement-of-Hong-Kong-to-generalized-tariffs-preferences--1971 — Page 162

RE

Y No. 61

CONFIDENTIAL

PRIORITY

CYPHER/CAT A

-5.....17.

Siker please.

66

FM CODEL BRUSSELS 031831Z

CONFIDENTIAL

HILK6/i

5/2/2

(

FRAME

TO PRIORITY FCO CODEL TELNO. 80 OF 3 FEBRUARY 1971 INFO PRIORITY

WASHINGTON UKMIS GENEVA ROUTINE BONN THE HAGUE LUXEMBOURG PARIS

ROME BERNE OSLO COPENHAGEN HELSINKI LISBON STOCKHOLM VIENNA

REYKJAVIK OTTAWA CANBERRA WELLINGTON COLOMBO SINGAPORE KUALA LUMPUR DELHI RAWALPINDI AND SAVING TO DUBLIN AND BRUSSELS.

E.I.D. TO ADVISE ON FURTHER DISTRIBUTION TO COMMONWEALTH POSTS.

FOLLOWING FROM CHANCELLOR OF THE DUCHY OF LANCASTER

ENLARGEMENT NEGOTIATIONS

MINISTERIAL MEETING 2 FEBRUARY

COMMONWEALTH BRIEFING

I BRIEFED THE COMMONWEALTH REPRESENTATIVES IN BRUSSELS TODAY ON THE

COURSE OF THE MINISTERIAL SESSION.

2. I SAID THAT THERE HAD BEEN USEFUL PROGRESS ON A NUMBER OF

ISSUES MANY OF WHICH WERE OF PARTICULAR CONCERN TO THE COMMONWEALTH

COUNTRIES,

THE ASIAN COMMONWEALTH (INDIA, PAKISTAN, CEYLON, SINGAPORE AND MALAYSIA) 3. I READ OUT THE COMMUNITY DELEGATION'S STATEMENT (MY TELEGRAM CODEL NO. 76). THE LATTER PART OF THIS DECLARATION WAS OF CONSIDERABLE IMPORTANCE. THE COMMUNITY HAD NOTED THAT THE POLICIES PURSUED BY BOTH THE COMMUNITY AND THE UNITED KINGDOM IN THEIR TRADE RELATIONS WITH THE COUNTRIES CONCERNED HAD BEEN GUIDED BY THE DESIRE TO EXPAND AND CEMENT THOSE RELATIONS. THE ENLARGED COMMUNITY EXPRESSED ITS INTENTION OF CONTINUING TO ACT IN THAT WAY. TO THIS END THE COMMUNITY WAS PREPARED TO EXAMINE WITH THESE COUNTRIES, AFTER ENLARGEMENT AND TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE SCOPE OF THE GENERALISED PREFERENCE SCHEME, SUCH PROBLEMS AS MIGHT ARISE IN THE TRADE SECTOR. IN WELCOMING THIS DECLARATION AND ASKING THAT IT BE RECORDED IN THE MINUTES OF THE CONFERENCE, THE COMMUNITY HAD OBVIOUSLY RECOGNISED THAT THE COUNTRIES INVOLVED WERE A JOINT CONCERN OF BOTH THE UNITED KINGDOM AND THE COMMUNITY, THIS DECLARATION WAS DIFFERENT FROM THE 1963 DECLARATION IN THAT IT WAS MORE COMPREHENSIVELY WORDED AND DID NOT COVER JUST TRADING AGREEMENTS. THE COMMUNITY HAD RECOGNISED THAT THE PARTICULAR PROBLEMS OF THE APPLICATION OF TARIFFS COULD BEST BE DEALT WITH AS THEY AROSE. IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE TO IDENTIFY ALL THE POINTS AFFECTED AT THIS STAGE NOR WAS IT POSSIBLE TO PREDICT HOW THE GENERALISED PREFERENCE SCHEME WOULD WORK IN ALL ITS. DETAILS,

*

CONFIDENTIAL

~/4. I HAD