368.
SECRET
RA PEKING
59815Z SEP 79
SECRET
Heck ourd/1 and!
Аква
6 SEP 1979
186
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELEGRAM NUMBER 772 OF 5 SEPT 79
INFO IMEDIATE HONG KONG
FOLLOWING FOR MCLAREN, HKGD
INDI
PA
по 1809
kun
Sex 187 0188 189
Tai
Š
NEW TERRITORIES LEASES
181A
1. I HAVE SEEN THE GOVERNOR'S LETTER OF 30 AUGUST 1979.
2. I CANNOT COMMENT ON THE INTERNAL ECONOMIC ARGUMENT ÎN HIS ! PARAGRAPH 4(A), BUT, AS HE HIMSELF RECOGNISES, IT IS OF SHORTER- TERM AND LESSER IMPORTANCE THAN THE ISSUE OF THE LEASES.
3. WE HAVE PUT OUR PROPOSALS ON LEASES TO THE CHINESE IN SOME DETAIL AND HAVE ARGUED THE NEED FOR EARLY ACTION ON OUR
PART WE HAVE HAD A PROMISE OF A RESPONSE. IF WE WERE NOW
TO ALLOW ACTION TO BE DELAYED BY THEIR FAILURE TO COME BACK WE SHOULD INEVITABLY GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT THE ISSUE WAS LESS URGENT AND SERIOUS THAN WE HAD ORIGINALLY CLAIMED, AND WOULD ENCOURAGE THE CHINESE TO BELIEVE THAT ACTION COULD BE DEFERRED INDEFINITELY, THEY KNOW THAT AT THE MOMENT ÎNVESTMENT HAS - NOT BEEN DISCOURAGED BY LACK OF CONFIDENCE, BUT THEY WOULD, I HOPE, APPRECIATE THAT WE WISHED TO FORTALL A SLIDE BEFORE IT HAD ALREADY BEGUN. THE SPEAKING NOTE LEFT WITH SONG MADE JUST THIS POINT.
4. 1 SHALL PROBABLY RUN INTO SONG IN THE COURSE OF ENTERTAINMENT FOR MR HEATH AT THE END OF THIS WEEK.
1 SHALL IN ANY CASE BE SEEKING A MEETING WITH HIM ON 10 SEPTEMBER FOR
A TOUR D'HORIZON AFTER MY RETURN FROM LEAVE. IT WOULD SEEM
STRANGE IF ON THAT OCCASION I DID NOT REFER BACK TO MY LAST
MEETING WITH HIM ON 5 JULY.
UNLESS HE HIMSELF RAISES THE MATTER,
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