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footing, we can legitimately expect the Hong Kong
Government to bear in mind the importance of this
contract to HMG.
3. The immediate need is to get the Anglo/Italian
bid in quickly. The Japanese have set a time limit
on their offer, which the Governor tells me implies
that rival bids will almost certainly have to be
received by 18 November and accepted within the
following fortnight as valid for the purposes of
negotiation. We have warned the Governor of the
difficulties which the new consortium may face in
putting their bid together in the time allowed.
But he has understandably commented that Hong Kong
could not safely allow a valid Japanese bid to lapse
on the mere hope that the Anglo/Italians will come
up to scratch. I am sure the answer is that the
new group must go ahead with its proposals as quickly
as it possibly can, with the aim of convincing Hong
Kong within the time allowed that their bid is a
valid one which must keep them in the running.
4.
Meanwhile our officials are working closely
together on the tactics of all this. As you will
know, there have been suggestions through our Trade
Commission in Hong Kong that the Japanese have
reverted to the idea of a government-to-government
guarantee, which they raised at the beginning of
the negotiations. Hong Kong have always previously
refused to consider this; and, because of their
constitutional position, they could not anyway give
a fully binding guarantee without our consent or
participation. It has also been suggested that the
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/Japanese
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