TNAG-0386-FCO40-432-Exports-of-non-cotton-textiles-from-Hong-Kong-to-the-EEC-1973 — Page 73

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NON-COTTON TEXTILES FROM HONG KONG

9/4

1. You will see from Hong Kong telegram No 368 that Hong Kong does not favour unilateral action vis-à-vis Benelux. You should also know that the meeting of the Textiles Working Group in Brussels fixed for April 10 has been postponed to May 2. This naturally indicates that there is less pressure over this in Benelux than we have been led to believe.

2. I have discussed this with DTI C & T Division who will be drafting a reply. The line I suggested was that we should reiterate to Hong Kong our view that unilateral restraints would remove any vestigial pressure for immediate talks with Hong Kong; that this should enable a satisfactory mandate to be agreed; that reference upwards to the Committee of Permanent Representatives would almost certainly result in political pressure for us to agree a mandate or negotiations. Secondly that we saw that from the point of view there were strong reasons against (but we should underline the great advantage to Hong Kong of having taken unilateral measures against Germany); that the postponement of the meeting yet again reinforced the view that Benelux were not likely to press for a mandate (although we do not know the basis for the postponement which might have been taken against Benelux wishes or without consulting them); and finally that there are signs that the market demands for Hong Kong textiles is such that resfections might no longer be necessary. Finally we should confirm that the matter is one for the Hong Kong Government to judge, but that they should know that if we are pressed to a mandate at the next meeting and do decide to go to Coreper it would then be too late for them to take action to stop the ball rolling.

སིའི་ཤིང་ཆས་

M A Goodfellow

6 April 1973

(17293) 897465 400m 1/73 G.W.B.Ltd. Gp.863