TNAG-0930-FCO40-1148-Sanctions-against-Iran-extension-to-Dependent-Territories-1980 — Page 83

CODE 18-77

£58:78

ir Jamieson (MVD)

VISAS FOR IRANIANS

# 4 311/2........

1415122/324/1

P

Pl. necinc. with othpps. 17 DEC 1980

RECEIVED ANY NO. 51

87

332

388 17112.

88

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

No

BBR

1.

Your minute GVV 345/324/1 of 16 December, paragraph 4 gret that I may have compounded uncertainty by failing to copy 10 MVD the extract from minutes of the Gibraltar Council showing what decision was taken on paper G/C 94/80. As you can see from the attached, Gibraltar now applies the same rules as UK.

2. After the Chief Minister made his remarks reported in this paper, SED consulted MVD. Hassan, himself a Jew, thought that there could be economic benefit to Gibraltar in wealthy Iranian Jews staying there in transit to UK from, eg, Morocco. MVD advised that there was no UK objection to this, but Gibraltar was also advised to ensure that no Iranian should be granted a visa to enter Gibraltar unless he or she already had somewhere else willing to accept them when they were no longer wanted in Gibraltar. advice was duly passed on to Gibraltar.

This

3. So Gibraltar has imposed its own visa requirement on Iranians. But it is not within the normal powers of FCO to ''require'

1 the Governor of Gibraltar to so order. Exceptional powers of the Secretary of State would have to be invoked if this were thought desirable or necessary in the UK's interests.

17 December 1980

cc: Miss Brett-Rooks

(HKGD)

CJH Keith

Southern European Department