TNAG-1275-FCO40-1625-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 205

2. FLATIN THEN REFERRED TO THE VERY SMALL UK OFF-TAKE FROM HONG KONG IN 1982, AND ASKED WHETHER WE WERE LIKELY TO TAKE ANY MORE. HAD WE GOT ANYWHERE IN OUR APPROACHES TO OTHER COUNTRIES? HAD

E ESTABLISHED THE FACTS ABOUT THE QUOTE NO SHOWS UNQUOTE THE SEEMED UNAWARE OF CONTACTS BETWEEN HONG KONG AND INS ADUMBRATED IN DAVIES' TELELETTER OF 3 NOVERBER, HE ALSO SAID THAT SUREK WAS PREPARED TO LOOK AT THESE QUOTE NO SHOWS UNQUOTE ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS, BUT NOT AT THE WHOLE LOT AS A LUMP) I SAID THAT REGRETTABLY I WOULD NOT GIVE CLEAR ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS. FLAT IN THEN SAID THAT THEY WERE IN THE PROCESS OF CONSIDERING A STRATEGY EMBRACING THE REST OF FY 1983 AND ALL OF FY 1984, AT THE END OF WHICH THEY HOPED TO BE ABLE TO DECLARE THE INDO CHINESE REFUGEE PROBLEM OVER (AT LEAST FOR US PURPOSES) HE COULD NOT TELL ME WHAT CEILING THEY WERE WORKING TO FOR 1984, BUT THE CEILING WAS NOT THE PROBLEM: THE PROBLEM WAS IN MAKING ANY CASE FOR EXCEPTIONS TO THE NOW TIGHTLY-DRAWN ADMISSION CRITERIA. THE ADMINISTRATION'S TESTIMONY TO CONGRESS IN APRIL WOULD BE CRUCIAL IN FIXING ALLOCATIONS FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE PROGRAMME, INCLUDING THE HANDLING OF THE RESIDUALS, (ON THE LINES MENTIONED BY AMBASSADOR DOUGLAS, PARA 5 OF SEGAR'S TELELETTER OF 22 NOVEMBER.) CONGRESS WOULD EXPECT THE UK TO DO SOMETHING FOR HONG KONG IF AMERICA ITSELF WERE TO MAKE ANY EXCEPTIONS.

3. IN SHORT, FLATIN CONFIRMED THE HARDENING US LINE, AND HAS GIVEN US REASONABLE WARNING THAT DECISIONS ON THE FINAL DRAW- DOWN OF THE INDO CHINESE REFUGEE PROGRAMME WILL SHORLY BE TAKEN. IF THERE IS LIKELY TO BE ROOM FOR THE UK (OR FAILING THAT, OTHER EUROPEANS) TO TAKE IN MORE FROM HONG KONG OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS, OUR BEST CHANCE OF GETTING A QUOTE MATCHING UNQUOTE RESPONSE FROM THE AMERICANS WILL BE TO LET THEM KNOW SOON, IN A FORM WHICH THEY CAN USE HELPFULLY IN CONGRESS. OTHERWISE

RESIGN WE SHALL PROBABLY HAVE TO RECOGNISE OURSELVES TO THE FACT THAT THEY ARE UNLIKELY TO DO MORE THAN THEY ARE DOING AT PRESENT.

4. AS HONG KONG ARE I BELIEVE AWARE, ROBERT FUNSETH, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY IN THE STATE DEPARTMENT'S BUREAU OF REFUGEE PROGRAMMES WILL BE VISITING HONG KONG FROM 13 TO 17 JANUARY.

SIGNED: S GOMERSALL

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