TNAG-0891-FCO40-1101-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 113

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WALDHEIM ACCEPTED THE EXTREME URGENCY OF THE PROBLEM. HE SAID HE WAS HEAVILY INVOLVED IN CONSULTATIONS. VANCE HAD TELEPHONED TWICE TODAY. ROMULO HAD CALLED (TO UNDERLINE THAT THERE WAS UNREST AMONG THE LOCAL POPULATION IN MANILA WHO RESENTED THE SPECIAL TREATMENT BEING GIVEN TO REFUGEES). THE PRIME MINISTER OF MALAYSIA HAD ALSO STRESSED HIS DOMESTIC DIFFICULTIES, WALDHEIM WAS PERSONALLY READY TO CONVENE A MINISTERIAL MEETING AT THE EARLIEST POSSIBLE MOMENT BUT HE MUST HAVE SUFFICIENT SUPPORT. ROMULO HAD AT HIS REQUEST TELEPHONED OTHER ASEAN FOREIGN MINISTERS AND WOULD HOPE TO GIVE HIM A FINAL DECISION SOON ON THE PROPOSAL FOR AN INTERNATIONAL MEETING. THE VIETNAMESE HAD SAID THEY WOULD ATTEND A MEETING, BUT ONLY PROVIDED IT WAS NON-POLITICAL AND CHAIRED BY THE UNHCR, THERE HAD BEEN NO POSITIVE RESPONSE FROM THE LATIN AMERICANS WHO SHOULD BE IN A POSITION TO PROVIDE ASSITANCE TO THE REFUGEES. (VANCE HAD STRESSED TO HIM THE NEED TO INVOLVE THE LATIN AMERICANS.) IT WAS NOT NECESSARY TO WAIT FOR FIRM PLEDGES OF ASSISTANCE BEFORE CONVENING A MINISTERIAL MEETING, BUT THERE HAD TO BE ENOUGH BROADLY POSITIVE REACTIONS (WE UNDERSTAND THAT THE CHINESE HAVE TODAY WRITTEN TO WALDHEIM IN SUPPORT OF THE PROPOSED MEETING.)

4. WALDHEIM CONFIRMED THAT HE REGARDED IT AS NECESSARY TO ESTABLISH THAT THE MINISTERIAL MEETING WOULD ONLY ADDRESS THE HUMANITARIAN ASPECTS OF THE PROBLEM. IT WAS ESSENTIAL THAT THE MINISTERIAL MEETING SHOULD PRODUCE RESULTS. OTHERWISE THE FRUSTRATIONS AND RESENTMENT DESCRIBED BY THE GOVERNOR WOULD BE EXACERBATED, A FAILED MEETING WAS WORSE THAN NO MEETING AND A POLITICAL CONFRONTATION WOULD ENSURE THAT THE MEETING WOULD FAIL. MANSFIELD DESCRIBED OUR LATEST ATTITUDE TO A MINISTERIAL MEETING, DRAWING ON YOUR TELEGRAM UNDER REFERENCE. WALDHEIM SAID HE WELCOMED THIS CLARIFCATION OF HMG'S ATTITUDE. HE SAID THAT VANCE HAD AGREED THAT THERE MUST BE A CLEAR SEPARATION BETWEEN THE POLITICAL AND HUMANITARIAN ASPECTS, AND HAD SUGGESTED THAT A SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING MIGHT FOLLOW THE TOKYO SUMMIT. BUT WALDHEIM ACCEPTED THE STRENGTH OF OUR ARGUMENTS THAT ANY COUNCIL MEETING WOULD BEST FOLLOW THE PROPOSED MINISTERIAL MEETING, (BUFFUM INTERJECTED THAT THE WORST THING WOULD BE FOR THE MINISTERIAL MEETING TO RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH A SECURITY COUNCIL DE BATE).

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