CONFIDENTIAL
38
057523
MDHIAN 4139
CONFIDENTIAL
FM WASHINGTON
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO 214
OF 270005Z JANUARY 90
INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG
TOP COPY Q DIST ?
1-MICO 3401
нко
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
SUPPA FEB 1990
YOUR TELNO 87: HONG KONG: INTERNATIONAL SUP
SUMMARY
·
DESK OFFICER
INDEX
PA
STATE VIEW PACKAGE POSITIVELY, AND ARE WORKING UP THEIR RESPONSE. THEY AIM TO BE SUPPORTIVE BUT INTER-AGENCY AND CONGRESSIONAL COMPLICATIONS ARE SLOWING THE PREPARATION.
DETAIL
2. I SPOKE TO KIMMITT ON 26 JANUARY AS IN TUR, REFERING ALSO TO HIS CONVERSATION EARLIER IN THE WEEK WITH WESTON. KIMMITT SAID THAT THE US VIEWED THE PACKAGE AS A POSITIVE STEP. THEY WOULD CONTINUE TO EXPRESS THEIR SUPPORT FOR A SMOOTH TRANSITION TO POST-1997, AND FOR POSITIVE MEASURES TO THIS END. THERE WERE CONSIDERING THEIR RESPONSE TO OUR PACKAGE IN THE LIGHT OF THIS. 3. BUT KIMMITT SAID THAT THERE WERE A NUMBER OF DOMESTIC COMPLICATIONS, WHICH MEANT THAT THIS RESPONSE WAS TAKING LONGER TO EMERGE THAN HE HAD ANTICIPATED. IT WAS NOT THAT THE ADMINISTRATION WERE NOT GIVING THE SUBJECT SERIOUS ATTENTION, BUT THAT THEY HAD TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE VIEWS BOTH OF OTHER AGENCIES AND OF CONGRESS. THERE WAS A HEAVY INPUT FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND FROM THE IMMIGRATION AND NATURALISATION SERVICE, AND GROWING CONGRESSIONAL PRESSURE. SOME IN CONGRESS WERE GENERALLY SUPPORTIVE OF THE UNITED STATES TAKING MORE PEOPLE FROM HONG KONG. BUT OTHERS, WHILE ALSO SUPPORTIVE, WERE WORRIED ABOUT THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS FOR THE TOTAL NUMBER OF IMMIGRANTS THAT THE US COULD ACCEPT EACH YEAR, AND FOR THE EFFECT OF A HONG KONG PACKAGE ON, FOR INSTANCE, THE NUMBER OF SOVIET JEWS AND REFUGEES FROM ARMENIA THAT THE US COULD ACCEPT. I ASKED IF IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE TO GET AROUND THIS BY DISAGGREGATING THE HONG KONGERS FROM OTHER GROUPS, ON THE BASIS THAT THIS WAS PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO MEET THE CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE IN HONG KONG POST-TIANANMEN, AND THEREFORE OUTSIDE THE NORMAL GLOBAL US VISA QUOTAS. KIMMITT THOUGHT THAT WHILE THIS MIGHT BE POSSIBLE POLITICALLY, IT WOULD NOT BE SO ON THE RESOURCE SIDE.
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I ASKED FOR KIMMITT'S REACTION TO THE IDEAS WHICH CONGRESSMAN SOLARZ HAD PUT TO YOU (PARA 3 OF TUR). KIMMITT SAID THAT, ON PURELY HONG KONG GROUNDS, THE ADMINISTRATION VIEWED THESE IDEAS
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