Mr Giffard
SECRET
261
HKK 040/5
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
30 AUG 1983
242
206
255
250
E, F
251
238
cc: Mr Chick, SAD (Personal)
DESK OFFICER INDEX
PA
BRIEFING OF THE AUSTRALIANS ON THE FUTURE OF HONG KONG
REGISTRY
Action Taken
PONG KM22/9
1. In paragraph 3 of our telno 260 to Canberra we undertook to provide Sir John Mason with up-to-date material for briefing senior Australian officials on our talks with the Chinese.
2. I attach a draft telegram to Canberra covering the first three round of the second phase of the talks. This information can be used also by Hong Kong and Peking to bring the Australian representatives there up-to-date. You may also wish to draw on
it in briefing the Australian Deputy High Commissioner here. Mr Donald briefed him on 20 July.
3.
Only the Australians and the Americans receive briefing from us on the talks at a very high level. Our latest instructions to Washington are in FCO telno 1376. Mr Donald gave the background to the Australian briefings in his minute of 18 August to PS/Mr Whitney. Our draft telegram continues the practice of telling the Australians slightly less than we do the Americans.
4. Despite Mr Hayden's recent indiscretions, we do not share Hong Kong's or Peking's views that we should now brief the Australians in a more circumspect manner than hitherto.
If we are to get the right message across to Australian Ministers and to stop them being unhelpful over confidence in Hong Kong), we must give senior Australian officials a regular and general picture of developments in the talks. It is not easy to control Mr Hayden, but to cut off information at this stage could make him genuinely hostile.
ند
23 August 1983
My Clift HKD
Thanks, he spoke
R D Clift
Hong Kong Department
Tel to issue, pl.
Ске
1 briefs Mr Robertson in parallel
on to
you
his
to-day, and passed contribution about Malaysian niterest.
24/8
CRE
SECRET
28