TNAG-0556-FCO40-651-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-into-othe-1975 — Page 6

HONG KONG

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES

Note

CONFIDENTIAL

१०/२

Flag

(68)

Flag

(69)

Flag H

UNITED STATES

1. HM Embassy in Washington have spoken as instructed to the Americans. The United States is ready to accept any Vietnamese related to US citizens or immediately related to any Vietnamese evacuated by the Americans; and employees of the US Government or their relatives. The Americans have also agreed to support our representations in Ottawa, Canberra, Wellington, Copenhagen and Stockholm. They are, however, unable to decide whether to accept residuum, i.e., those refugees with no connections anywhere, until they have a firmer idea of how many of the Hong Kong refugees they will be accepting under the criteria mentioned above. (Washington telno 1711).

CANADA

2.

Canada, who had already agreed to accept 200 of the Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong from a total allocation of 3,000, may be able to increase the allocation by up to 150 depending on the number of applications they receive from refugees in Singapore and Japan. The Canadian Cabinet are shortly to consider raising this ceiling to 5,000. Hong Kong may well benefit from this concession and also from the Canadian willingness to take in refugees above this ceiling provided they have relatives in Canada. (Ottawa telno. 272).

AUSTRALIA

3. The High Commission took action with the official in charge of Vietnamese refugees who related our approach to the appeal from the

UNHCR with whom Mr Whitlam wishes to work. The official also asked

whether we could provide figures of numbers of Vietnamese likely

to be accepted here. We shall be replying shortly when we know the Home Secretary's decision on the reply to be given to the UNHCR'S appeal; but Australia herself is not at present releasing any information about the numbers they will accept, even to friendly governments. (Canberra telno 429 and 433).