TNAG-0561-FCO40-656-Review-of-narcotics-problem-in-Hong-Kong-1975 — Page 43

ހ

BECRET

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London SW1

Griffiths Esq

D85

Ministry of Defence Main Building Whitehall

Telephone 01-

Your reference

Our reference HKK 19/1

Date

3 July 1975

17

NARCOTICS:

1.

Dur

Suffells,

INTERCEPTION OF THAI TRAWLERS

RI

MF:

REF

INKK 19/3 (175)

(27) ₤133) 1

In his letter HKK 19/3 of 9 November 1973 to Parrish, Alan Wotton raised the question of possible Royal Naval assistance in intercepting Thai trawlers carrying drugs from Thailand to Hong 2 Kong.

In your letter D/DS5/II1 of 10 January 1974 you set out the extent to which you thought the Royal Navy might take action to try to stop the trawlers.

2.

At a recent meeting held in London between officials from the US, UK and Hong Kong this problem was once again discussed. Due to much improved intelligence the trawler traffic was suddenly halted last November with the seizure of two trawlers off the Vietnamese coast. Unfortunately there is now strong evidence that the trawler traffic has restarted and US and Thai officials are becoming very frustrated that nothing can be done under international law to seize these trawlers. Two new proposals have been put forward and I am writing now to ask for your views on the possibility of Royal Naval participation in one of the proposed schemes. This is that when a Thai trawler is known to be approaching Hong Kong, a Thai police : official should be taken out on board a Royal Naval vessel and put aboard the Thai trawler to make an arrest. This would take place when the trawler was in international waters, possibly 60 to 100 miles from Hong Kong. We have been told that under Thai law a Thai official

ould have the necessary authority to effect an arrest in international waters. The second proposal, on which I think you need not comment, is for a Thai vessel to be stationed in Hong Kong. When it became known that a Thai trawler was approaching the Colony it would go out and arrest the trawler in international waters.

3.

It would be very helpful if you could let us have your reactions to the proposal that a Thai official might board a trawler from a Royal Naval vessel. We are hoping to have a further meeting in the week beginning 21 July with the Hong Kong Commissioner of Narcotics, who is at present in London, and it would be helpful if you could let us have your comments by then.

hausanne Nuth

PL O'Keeffe

Hong Kong & Indian Ocean Dept