TNAG-0628-FCO40-776-Effect-of-GATT-Multi-Fibre-Arrangement-on-Hong-Kong-negotiat-1977 — Page 17

RESTRICTED

STATED THE ACCEPTANCE OF DOCUMENT 44 ON BEHALF OF THE COMMUNITY, FRANCE (COLMANT) IMMEDIATELY ASKED FOR THE FLOOR: TRAN (COMMISSION)

TOLD THE CHAIR THAT IT COULD NOT GIVE FRANCE THE FLOOR: THE EEC

WAS REPRESENTED BY THE COMMISSION BY VIRTUE OF ARTICLES 128 AND 113 OF THE TREATY OF ROME: THE EEC ALONE WAS PARTICIPATING IN THE MFA. LONG (CHAIRMAN, TEXTILES COMMITTEE) SAID THAT A DIVERGENCE OF VIEWS

WITHIN THE COMMUNITY WAS A MATTER FOR THE COMMUNITY AND IT WAS UP

TO THEM TO COME TO A DECISION. HE GAVE FRANCE THE FLOOR. IN HIS

STATEMENT, COLMANT SAID THAT FRANCE WISHED TO CONFIRM ITS POSITION

AS BEING GENERALLY IN FAVOUR OF THE MFA AND FULLY SUBSCRIBED TO THE

STATEMENT WHICH HAD BEEN MADE BY THE COMMUNITY ON 5 JULY. THIS

STATEMENT SHOWED ABJECTIVES, PROVISIONS AND CONDITIONS AND DOCUMENT 44 WAS TOO FAR REMOVED FROM THE KEY ELEMENTS OF THE

COMMUNITY'S STATEMENT OF 5 JULY. FRANCE COULD NOT AGREE TO THE

TEXT OF DOCUMENT 44 AND WOULD NOT BE BOUND BY THE PROVISIONS

OF PARAGRAPHS 5 AND 9 OF THAT DOCUMENT. HE SAID THAT HE WAS

SPEAKING ON SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT

AND ASKED FOR HIS STATEMENT TO BE RECORDED. TRAN (COMMISSION)

ASKED THE CHAIRMAN TO SAY THAT THE STATEMENT WAS NULL AND VOID

AND WOULD NOT DE RECORDED IN THE MINUTES. HE REPEATED THAT

ONLY THE COMMISSION COULD COMMIT THE EEC.

4. WITH VARYING DEGREES OF ENTHUSIASM OR HESITATION JAPAN, HONG KONG, KOREA, MEXICO, AUSTRIA, SWITZERLAND, NORDICS, TURKEY AND THE PHILIPPINES SUPPORTED DOCUMENT 44 (THE TRIPARTITE TEXT). BRAZIL, INDIA, YUGOSLAVIA, COLOMBIA, EGYPT, SRI LANKA, URUGUAY, GUATEMALA, PREFERRED DOCUMENT 43. NEITHER CANADA NOR AUSTRALIA WOULD GO ALONG WITH EITHER TEXT: NEITHER COULD SUPPORT CONCLUSIONS

THAT PROVIDED SOLUTIONS FOR SOME AND NOT OTHERS, AND NOR COULD THEY SUPPORT CONCLUSIONS THAT PREJUDUCED OR RESTRICTED GATT RIGHTS9

CANADA STOOD BY ITS STATEMENT IN MARCH WHICH HAD SAID THAT AMEND-

MENT OF THE MEA WAS REQUIRED AND THAT CANADA HAD PROPOSALS OF

HER OWN TO MAKE AND STOOD READY TO EXAMINE ANY OTHER COUNTRY'S

PROPOSALS. ROMANIA, HUNGARY, SPAIN, AND PAKISTAN WOULD SUPPORT NEITHER TEXT AT THIS STAGE AND URGED A MUCH LONGER TIME BEFORE THE

TEXTILES COMMITTEE WAS NE-CONVENED TO REACH ANY DECISIONS.

--2-- RESTRICTED

15.