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Any other course would have put Denmark in strange company since only four small countries with relations with the North and the South had co-sponsored and these were countries with which Denmark did not normally associate. Mr Klaus said that there was consider- able concern in the Netherlands at South Korea's attitude to human rights and this could restrict the Netherlands' freedom of movement. On account of this they had not actively lobbied for the friendly resolution. The Netherlands were not a champion of the Republic of Korea and their interest was in the security of peace of the region. However if the ROK did not change its attitude it might be difficult to maintain this position. It would be advisable to press on Seoul the desirability of their respecting human rights. The Nine might consider ways and means of influencing the South Korean Government on this.
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III Indo-China
7. Mr Klaus said that the Netherlands were seeking the accreditation
of their ambassador in Peking to Saigon. Mr Male referred to the proposals we had in mind for our future representation in Vietnam and to the question of Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong. Herr Steger said that they had heard from a North Vietnamese source that negotiations were in progress about the form reunification would take (eg by elections, plebiscite etc) and the North Vietnamese had hinted that this might occur in less than a year. M. Duzer (France) said that the French embassy in Saigon continued to operate on a de facto basis but that its eventual status was still unclear. Mr Salimei (Presidency) said that Italy had
received indications that the reunification process was being accelerated. The former Italian embassy in Saigon had been taken over and was being used as a food processing plant and the Italian impression was that there were now considerable obstacles in the way of diplomatic relations with South Vietnam. Miss O'Dwyer (Ireland) said that her government had been asked by the UNHCR to accept three Vietnamese and three Cambodian families and enquired about the position of the Nine on refugees. In reply Mr Klaus said that persons of Vietnamese origin were being allowed to stay in the Netherlands and cases of families with some connection with the country were treated sympathetically. In addition, about
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