TNAG-0843-FCO40-1053-Visit-of-Lord-Carrington--Secretary-of-State-for-Foreign-and-1979 — Page 14

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ESSENTIAL FACTS (may be used freely except where indicated)

UNCTAD V

1. UNCTAD V met in Manila from 3 May to 3 June. Consensus results were

adopted on a number of matters including protectionism, commodities,

resource transfers, the least developed, the UN Liner Code, technology

transfer and economic co-operation between developed countries (ECDC).

The G77 forced through some other resolutions on, eg civil aviation, a

study of a new Complementary Financing Facility, for which the Germans

voted (see paragraph 7 below), international monetary reform and bulk

shipping. Various other questions on which no agreement was reached were

remitted for further consideration in UNCTAD or other international bodies,

eg the outcome of the MTNS, GSP, debt etc. But there was no breakdown

and little rancour. Group B displayed a useful degree of unity: G77 were

divided between the various regional groups and, above all, over the oil

issue which the OPEC countries refused to have discussed. Senior officials

of the Seven met in Paris on 12 June under the chairmanship of Mr Nishiyama

and reached an agreed assessment of the outcome of UNCTAD very much on the

above Lines.

ENERGY

2. See Brief No 2.

DEFICITS

3. The deficits for non-oil developing countries will rise from $25.6

billion in 1978 to $32.5 billion in 1979 (WEP) (OECD figures show a rise

from 831 billion to $40 billion). The international financial institutions

and the commercial banks will have their resources tested if they are to

handle the worsened current account situations of oil importing countries.

Countries with structural surpluses are better placed to increase their

ODA than others.

TRADE

4. We welcome the UNCTAD V agreement that the world's economic problems

cannot be solved by protectionist measures and that there should be a

2

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