TNAG-0893-FCO40-1103-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 169

FCO40 Hong Kong Department Records 聯邦事務部香港部檔案 All

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4.

Hong Kong must be our main concern. The Governor has

set out the issues in his latest telegram, No 910. The American line is clear: they will not take more from Hong Kong unless

we do

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see Hong Kong telegram No 890. Unless the Americans do more, no-one else will. This is a vital argument for

declaring the largest possible figure for the UK and allotting most (but not all) of it to Hong Kong. Presentationally I still think we should keep the UK and Hong Kong quotas separate.

Most of the Nine are doing more, though it is fair to say that, with the exception of the French, they started from a low base. You will have experienced the mood in Tokyo.

5.

Finance

6.

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see

Provided we take substantially more refugees, Peter Blaker and I think we can hold our position by offering UNHCR another £1m, the maximum in Neil Marten's view that the aid programme can afford. If our resettlement offer has to be low, then the

£1m will be regarded as much too niggardly. However there are

still difficulties with Treasury Ministers over the £1m Peter Blaker's telegram to you in Tokyo, No 304. Neil Marten will

try to satisfy the Financial Secretary that he can make an offsetting cut elsewhere in the aid programme (we are meeting to discuss aid programme cuts on 9 July). But you may need to stress to the Prime Minister that this contribution is politically

essential.

Representation in Geneva

7.

We shall also need to decide who should lead for us in

Geneva. Waldheim has asked for Ministerial level representation. Peter Blaker will be available, as you wish, and you may think that this would be appropriate. The meeting is not the one we

wanted in view of Waldheim's stipulation that it should concentrate

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