CONFIDENTIAL
ENTIAL
1
Proposed Amendments to draft MOD letter to the Treasury
DELETE last sentence of paragraph 4 and existing paragraph 5.
INSERT new paragraph :-
"5.
However, those now dealing with this matter in the FCO,
some of whom were directly involved in Hong Kong at the time, consider that the view [clearly expressed by the Commonwealth
Office in 1967 was incorrect. They point out that in the last
sentence of their telegram No. 1320, the Hong Kong Government
stated that " our present view is they are defensive measures
designed to meet an external threat and that therefore the charge
should be one which this Government should not have to meet
警要 11
In support of this view, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office have
provided the following information in addition to that contained
in the telegram.
INSERT new paragraph 8:
"18. The Ministry of Defence summarise their position as
follows -
a.
b.
Telegram 1320 indicates that the primary purpose of
the fence was to control entry to the Colony other
than of a military threat.
It would in any event be difficult to conceive such
a fence being built as a serious defence against an
external military threat. Indeed, the many incidents
chronicled in the attached confidential report compiled
by the Hong Kong Government on the disturbance appeared
to have been designed to cause maximum harassment and
disruption in the border areas, rather than to pose a
serious external military threat.
FITIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
/ c.
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