CONFIDENTIAL
3. THE PRESSURE ON US TO TAKE DEPENDENTS WHO DO NOT STRICTLY MEET OUR CRITERIA WILL INCREASE AS THIS EXERCISE CONTINUES. WE ARE ALREADY REFUSING A LARGER AND LARGER PERCENTAGE OF NEW APPLICATIONS. IF HONG KONG OFFICIALS WERE POSTED TO SAIGON, THE PRESSURE ON THEM BOTH FROM THE VIETNAMESE TRYING TO GET RID OF THE CHINESE AND FROM THE CHINESE TRYING TO LEAVE VIETNAM, COULD BECOME INTOLERABLE. THE VIETNAMESE MIGHT EVEN HOLD SUCH OFFICIALS HOSTAGE TO OUR ACCEPTANCE OF ANY CASES OUTSIDE OUR PRESENT POLICY WHICH THEY WISHED US TO TAKE. THE ADVANTAGE OF MAIDEEN IS THAT HE IS AN INDEPENDENT OPERATOR WHO CAN ABSORB SUCH PRESSURES MORE EASILY
THAN AN OFFICIAL.
4. MEANWHILE WE ARE GRATEFUL TO YOU FOR RENEWING MAIDEEN'S PASSPORT. THE VIETNAMESE HAVE NOW ACCEPTED FOUR MORE FLIGHTS IN JULY (REF. HANOI TELNO 104) AND OUR IMPRESSION FROM THE LAST FLIGHT IS THAT THEY ARE FAIRLY HAPPY WITH OUR EFFORTS. IF MAIDEEN DEFINITELY DECIDES TO LEAVE IN SEPTEMBER, WE WOULD BE WILLING TO INVITE HIM TO HONG KONG THEN FOR DISCUSSION AS TO WHAT WE SHOULD DO SUBSEQUENTLY. BY THEN THE PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE OF THIS EXERCISE WILL BE CLEARER.
BUT IF WE PRESS THE VIETNAMESE NOW TO ACCEPT OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVES IN SAIGON, IT SEEMS LIKELY THEY WILL ASK WHY WE NEED ANYONE OTHER THAN MAIDEEN AND IT WILL BE DIFFICULT TO AVOID SIGNALLING TO THE VIETNAMESE THAT MAIDEEN IS INTENDING TO LEAVE. THIS IN TURN COULD JEOPARDISE THE FLIGHTS WHICH WE ARE ALREADY PLANNING.
5. WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE VIETNAMESE HAVE RAISED AGAIN WITH HM AMBASSADOR HANOI THE POSSIBILITY OF A FIFTH MAN JOINING THE VIETNAM TRADE REPRESENTATIVES IN HONG KONG (REF HANOI TELNO 102 TO US, NOT TO FCO). ALTHOUGH WE ARE RELUCTANT TO SEE THE VIETNAMESE PRESENCE IN HONG KONG INCREASED IN PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCES, WE ARE PREPARED TO GRANT A VISA TO THE FIFTH REPRESENTATIVE PROPOSED BY THEM. YOU MAY LIKE TO CONSIDER WHETHER THIS COULD BE USED AS A
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/LEVER
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