2. THE BULK OF ZHOU'S AND HUANG'S REMARKS WERE ON STANDARD LINES:
HT MADE NO (NO) SENSE TO TALK ABOUT PROSPERITY UNTIL SOVEREIGNTY
WAS SETTLED. SOVERE GNTY WAS NON-NEGOTIABLE. CHINESE LEADERS WOULD
NOT BE COMPARED TO LIN HONGZHANG. ZHOU SAID THAT HE COULD NOT DIS-
CUSS DETAILS OF THE NEGOTIATIONS BUT QUOTE FELT OBLIGED TO RESPOND
TO SOME OF THE VIEWS BEING EXPRESSED IN THE BRITISH PRESS UNQUOTE.
SOME BRITISH NEWSPAPERS ARGUED THAT IN ORDER FOR HONG KONG'S
PROSPERITY TO BE PRESERVED IT WAS NECESSARY FOR BRITAIN TO OBTAIN
ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROL OF THE WHOLE OF HONG KONG. THIS WAS UN-
ACCEPTABLE TO CHINA AND THE BRITISH HAD BEEN TOLD SO. THIS WAS
TANTAMOUNT TO IMPOSING A NEW UNEQUAL TREATY ON CHINA.
3. BOTH ZHOU AND HUANG GAVE THE USUAL ASSURANCES THAT HONG KONG'S
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SYSTEMS, AS WELL AS ITS WAY OF LIFE, WOULD NOT BE CHANGED, AND THAT THE EXISTING LEGAL SYSTEM WOULD BE RETAINED EXCEPT FOR THE ELIMINATION OF LAWS WHICH HAD A COLONIAL
FLAVOUR AND RIGHTS OF APPEAL TO LONDON. HUANG HUA SAID THAT
RESPONSIBILITY FOR FOREIGN POLICY QUESTIONS WOULD REST WITH THE
PRC. ZHOU SAID THAT IF THE BRITISH SIDE WOULD RELINQUISH ITS
OUTDATED QUOTE COLONIALLY TAINTED UNQUOTE POSITION AND STOP HAGGLING ON THE ISSUE OF SOVEREIGNTY AND ADMINISTRATION, OTHER OUTSTANDING QUESTIONS WOULD BE EASY. BOTH ZHOU AND HUANG REPEATED THE THREAT OF A UNILATERAL STATEMENT BY CHINA MF THE TALKS DRAGGED
ON FOR TOO LONG, AS WELL AS THE THREAT TO REVISE THE TIMETABLE FOR ACTION ME THE SITUATION HIN HONG KONG DETERIORATED.
4. COMMENT: THESE MEETINGS TOOK PLACE BEFORE THE FIFTH ROUND OF TALKS, AND MAY THEREFORE BE REGARDED AS PART OF THE GENERALISED PRESSURE TACTICS ADOPTED BY THE CHINESE AT THE THME. ZHOU'S
ASSERTION THAT HE HAD TO RESPOND TO VIEWS BEING EXPRESSED #N
BRITISH NEWSPAPERS HIS A TRANSPARENT PRETEXT FOR THE BREACH OF CONFIDENT HALITY WHICH HIS REMARKS CONSTITUTED.
SIGNED: RP MARGOLIS
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