DMD Thomas Esq CMG WASHINGTON
Dear Denck,
GOVT TDEN ETAL
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
London SWIA 2AH
2 June 1983
(305)
MKK040/1
REULSED
INDEX
ра
г
C7818
MEETING WITH JI CHAOZHU
B82
Many thanks for your letter of 23 May recording your discussion with Ji Chaozhu. I remember him from my time in Poking when he used to interpret for Chou En-lai.
1.
2. What he said on Hong Kong was encouraging. I draw comfort in particular from his acknowledgement of our willing- ness to settle the matter in a spirit of friendship and from his optimism that a solution can be found that will be acceptable all round, including to the people of Hong Kong. Our differences with the Chinese on this issue may appear smaller, from the Chinese point of view, than those the Americans have over Taiwan: they are nonetheless substantial enough to make a long wrangle very possible. In that case the goodwill and faith evinced by Ji will be vital on both sides.
༣.
Further meetings of this kind with Ji could be useful, even if both sides only use them for the time being to make generally reassuring noises. If we had some special points to make, Ji is sufficiently well placed to pass these on to the place in Peking where they will register, and I feel reasonably confident that he is less likely than most to mis- interpret what we say. But we have not yet reached the stage where we need to consider the possibility of more specific messages.
Cc: Sir Edward Youde, GCMG MBE, HONG KONG
Sir Percy Cradock, KCMG, PEKING
-ever,
Yours
Alaiv
A E Donald
CONFIDEΝΤΙΛΙ,