May I first take this opportunity of expressing my great distress on learning of the deaths of the fourteen Hong Kong residents who were aboard the Korean airliner which was shot down by the Soviet Union. As you know, Her Majesty's Government have already present a claim for compensation to the Soviet authorities, and we shall do our utmost to ensure that this claim is fully
honoured. But I am aware that no amount of money can make up for lasting grief which will be felt by the families and friends of those who died.
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