TNAG-0386-FCO40-432-Exports-of-non-cotton-textiles-from-Hong-Kong-to-the-EEC-1973 — Page 18

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TO PRIORITY FCO TELNO 2635 OF 21 MAY/INFO ROUTINE TO UKMIS GENEVA INFO SAVING TO TOKYO AND WASHINGTON,

MY TELEGRAM 2092 : MEETING OF TEXTILES WORKING GROUP: 17/18 MAY.

1. THE GROUP'S DISCUSSIONS ON 17/18 MAY WERE DEVOTED TO CO-ORDINATION OF A COMMUNITY POSITION FOR THE NEXT MEETING OF THE GATT TEXTILES

WORKING PARTY WHICH WILL TAKE PLACE IN GENEVA FROM 4-6 JUNE. OTHER

POINTS ON THE AGENDA WERE NOT REACHED. AT THE COMMISSION'S INSIST- ENCE, A MEETING IS TO BE HELD ON THE AFTERNOON OF 28 MAY TO DISCUSS

THE QUESTION OF A MANDATE FOR HONG KONG.

2. DISCUSSION WAS BASED ON A DRAFT SPEAKING NOTE FOR USE BY THE

COMMUNITY SPOKESMAN IN GENEVA. THE FINAL TEXT FOR THIS IS BEING

DISTRIBUTED BY BAG, OTHER POINTS AGREED, ON WHICH THE COMMUNITY'S SPOKESMAN WILL DRAW IN GENEVA, (AND A NUMBER OF POINTS OF DISAGREE- MENT) WILL BE CONTAINED IN THE COUNCIL SECRETARIAT'S RECORD OF THE

MEETING, WHICH, WITH THE SPEAKING NOTE, WILL BE SUBMITTED TO THE

COMMITTEE OF PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVES ON 30 MAY.

TRADE LIBERALISATION

3. THIS PASSAGE CAUSED THE GREATEST DIFFICULTIES, ON THE QUESTION

OF WHAT SHOULD HAPPEN TO MEMBER COUNTRIES' EXISTING RESTRICTIONS, ERNST (COMMISSION) URGED THAT AS MANY AS POSSIBLE SHOULD BE REMOVED

AS PART OF EEC'S OFFER. THE FRENCH WANTED TO MAINTAIN A HARD CORE

OF RESTRICTIONS AND WERE NOT PREPARED TO CONCEDE THAT THESE SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO REVIEW ON BASIS OF THE CRITERIA TO BE ESTABLISHED

UNDER THE NEW ARRANGEMENT.

4. THERE WAS AGREEMENT THAT THERE SHOULD BE A SAFEGUARD MECHANISM

BASED ON OBJECTIVE CRITERIA, FRANCE, ITALY AND DENMARK COULD NOT

AGREE THAT THESE CRITERIA SHOULD APPLY EQUALLY TO EXISTING RESTRICT-

JONS.

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/FCO PLEASE PASS