TNAG-0714-FCO40-910-Future-of-the-Dependent-Territories-1978 — Page 5

CONFI DENTIAL

UNP 025/26

*K O

6 JUN1978

PA

REGIST Y

Action Tal on

Mr Ivor kichard QC

UKMIS NEW YORK

2.

Mr Beattie

м

24 %

23 May 1978

C

Mrs. Wisiman

Mr. Trepat Mr. Fyld then pe

REMAINING UK TERRITORIES AND THE COMMITTEE OF 24

216

by

25/v

Thank you for your helpful and stimulating despatch of 28 March, which we have submitted to Ministers. We have given it very careful thought.

We are in complete agreement with you that our policy of cooperation with the Committee of 24 and our visiting missions have paid dividends, and that we can benefit substantially from closer understanding by the Committee of our problems with Dependent Territories; we shall continue to be as forthcoming as is possible on the question of visiting missions.

3. Similarly, we can understand your frustration at the disproportionate amount of time and energy which you and your staff are obliged to spend on detailed consideration of a small number of island territories, whose progress to independence is frustrated by physical and economic rather than political factors. This work can only be increased by the Soviet-inspired propaganda exercises on the question of military bases. This is a matter which we are considering separately, following Woods' letter of 18 April to Beattie. You suggest that as an alternative to the present position we might consider encouraging the Committee of 24 to witness acts of self- determination which would be followed by removal of the territories concerned from the UN list of Dependent Territories.

4.

This is an attractive idea; but we have concluded that a change of policy on these lines would give rise to more problems than it would solve. The crux of the matter is in the last sentence of paragraph 14 of your despatch, where you say that a referendum would be eagerly greeted in the Cayman Islands "so long as we were to give an undertaking to abide by the results". The problem is that neither we nor the territory might wish to become committed permanently by a decision that might appear irrevocable. We estimate that a number of dependent territories, if asked now to determine their political future, would almost certainly opt to remain British. This would

/introduce