CONFIDENTIAL
144211 MDTTAN 0046
This article came to the attention of Peking, and Chinese Embassy officials duly formed up to Segal to tell him that their authorities took a very dim view of what he had written. In the course of the discussion that followed he unwisely made a reference to the forthcoming Ditchley Conference. Subsequently, he understands, the Chinese made strenuous attempts to get an invitation to the Conference, but were told that attendance on this occasion was limited to the usual range of Ditchley participants.
5. As you will know, it was one of the conclusions of the Conference that "the West" (broadly defined) should seek a greater coordination of their policies towards China. I am also faxing to you a note by the Director, which I have just received, setting out his own summary of discussion. Of course it is a grossly simplistic conclusion to draw, as the Chinese apparently have, that the meeting had "decided that China was becoming too powerful and should be opposed by the West". There was however' an exchange of views on China's bid to host the Olympics. These views were strongly divergent (the official Japanese participant, for example, argued that it was in the interests of the West for Peking to be allowed to host the Olympics in 2000) but the Director's note accurately concludes that a majority doubted the wisdom, on political grounds, of allowing the Olympics to go to Peking.
6. Of course the Ditchley Conference, like all such conferences, comprised individuals speaking in a personal capacity. A large majority were not government representatives (although there were representatives of HMG, the new US Administration and the German, Japanese, Italian, Korean and Russian governments).
On participation the Chinese are seriously misinformed. No representative of the IISS was in fact present (Segal was otherwise engaged at a conference in Canada). Jeremy Brown, a Director of Mathesons, was present but did not play a very active role.
7. Obviously the Chinese Embassy have been trying to piece together an account of proceedings at the Conference and their report to Peking takes a highly distorted form which can only nourish Chinese conspiracy theories. Despite the fact that there
tenuous basis in fact, it is clearly best for you to tell your interlocutors that the stories doing the rounds in Peking are without foundation.
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CONFIDENTIAL
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