TNAG-0886-FCO40-1096-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 10

CONFIDENTIAL

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:

1978. Imports from Victnum were negligible.

Any

attempt to reduce still further this trade would be unlikely to have any effect on Vietnamese attitudes.

(iii) We shall review urgently with ODA and the Department

of Trade the current position on aid/trade with

Vietnam.

(b)

(i)

(ii)

(iii)

Indirect

We have been in frequent touch with the Governments of the ASEAN countries (Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines) and have urged them to put pressure on Vietnam. The ASEAN governments have. their own strong reasons for making such representations but their influence is limited and Thailand in particular is inhibited by its problems with refugees from Cambodia.

We have also been in touch with the Americans and the Japanese and both governments have told us that they are doing all they can.

The only government which has any direct influence with Victnam is the USSR with which Vietnam is allied. Ne are consulting B Ambassador in Hoscow about whether and if so how representations might best be made to the Soviet Government, and have asked the Minister of tube, Er Peter Blaker, who is seeing the Americans tomorrow to seek the views of the State Department on this.

(iv) The Foreign and Commonwealth Decretary hopes to discuss

this and other aspects of the Vietnamese refugee probler. with representatives of the Hing in the margins of the Greek accession meeting in Athens. At official. level we have discussed the matter frequently with reprerentssåver of the Hine. It was last anized, again at British initiative, in the Asia Working Group of the Wine, on 19 1. Our po tujken rece; ui e the rerieur netta of the #i'antion lui. Inge no solutions Lo offer.

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