IMMEDIATE
CYPHER CAT/A
CONFIDENTIAL
FM BONN 191800Z
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CONFIDENTIAL
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هم عمل منا
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TO IMMEDIATE FCO TELNO. 194 OF 19 JANUARY/INFO IMMEDIATE UKREP BRUSSELS INFO SAVING TO PARIS ROME BRUSSELS THE HAGUE LUXEMBOURG TOKYO DUBLIN UKMIS GENEVA SEOUL
YOUR TELNO. 54 : PROPOSED EEC-HONG KONG NEGOTIATIONS IN NON-COTTON TEXTILES
1. COUNSELLOR (ECONOMIC) CALLED THIS AFTERNOON ON FRIEDERICH (ASSISTANT SECRETARY LEVEL) IN THE MINISTRY OF THE ECONOMY, AND LEFT WITH HIM A BOUT DE PAPIER COVERING PARAGRAPII 2 OF YOUR TEL UNDER REFERENCE. AT THE SAME TIME THOMSON MADE THE POINTS IN YOUR PARAGRAPH 3 EMPHASIZING OUR SYMPATHY FOR THE GERMAN DIFFICULTY AND ARGUING THE CASE FOR A WELL DOCUMENTED APPROACH ON AN ITEMISED BASIS. HE REPEATED THESE POINTS DURING THE DISCUSSION.
2. AFTER THANKING US FOR THE COURTESY OF ADVANCE NOTICE OF WHAT
WHO WILL BE PRESENT AT THE WE WOULD SAY ON 22 JANUARY, FRIEDERICH MEETING THAT DAY LAUNCHED INTO A GOOD NATURED BUT SPIRITED ATTACK ON THE BRITISH POSITION, WHICH DISAPPOINTED HIM FOR THE REASONS GIVEN BELOW. HE WAS OBVIOUSLY EXTREMELY SENSITIVE TO ANY CRITICI SM
OF THE GERMAN INITIATIVE.
A) THE GERMAN MARKET, WHICH WAS THE MOST OPEN ONE, WAS CARRYING PRACTICALLY THE WHOLE BRUNT AS FAR AS THE OLD COMMUNITY WAS CONCERNED OF HONG KONG'S NON-COTTON TEXTILE SALES. NEARLY 93% OF THE IMPORTS BY THE SIX FROM HONG KONG WERE ACCOUNTED FOR BY THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC, THIS UPWARD TREND WAS CONTINUING SHARPLY AND FRIEDERICH QUOTED EXAMPLES OF RECENT REDUNDANCIES AND BANKRUPTCIES, WHICH HE SAID RESULTED FROM IT. IN ALL OF THIS THE GERMAN DIFFICULTIES HAD NOV BEEN COMPOUNDED BY THE RESTRICTIONS WHICH THE U.K. HAD SUCCESSFULLY NEGOTIATED BILATERALLY WITH HONG KONG.
D) AS TO ** LIMITED DURATION'' HE NOTED THAT THE UK HAD SEVN UP AN AGREEMENT WITH HONG KONG, AT A TIME WHEN WE WERE WITHIN SIGHT OF EEC MEMBERSHIP, UNTIL 1976.
/C) THE FEDERAL
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