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RESTRICTED
DESKBY 1909OOZ
FM HONG KONG 190710Z OCT 83
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
ADVANCE Copy
IMMEDIATE
TELEGRAM NUMBER 1552 OF 19 OCTOBER 1983
INFO HMMEDIATE PEKING, HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON AND ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT REPRESENTATIVES WASHINGTON, NEW YORK BRUSSELS AND UKMIS GENEVA
FUTURE OF HONG KONG: PRESS COVERAGE
1. PRACTICALLY ALL MANDEPENDENT NEWSPAPERS DETECTED A MORE CORDINAL ATMOSPHERE ON THE EVE OF THE NEXT ROUND OF TALKS IN PEKING, WHILST A NUMBER OF PAPERS ARGUED THAT THE COMING ROUND WAS LIKELY TO BE THE MOST IMPORTANT SO FAR, THEY DID NOT (NOT) EXPECT HIN ANY JOINT STATEMENT ON 20 OCTOBER TO GO MUCH BEYOND THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF DATES FOR THE NEXT ROUND. MOST REPORTS COMMENTED ON THE ABSENCE OF REF- ERENCES TO HONG KONG IN THE MED NA IN PEKING. SEVERAL INDEPENDENT PAPERS CLAIMED THAT QUOTE LEFT WING SOURCES UNQUOTE WERE RELATIVELY OPTIMISTIC THAT BRITAIN WOULD ADOPT A QUOTE NEW INITIATIVE UNQUOTE (MY TELNO 1545). THE MAIN NEWS ON ATV'S ENGLISH CHANNEL LAST NIGHT CARRIED A REPORT FROM DIANA LIN HAN PEKING WHO QUOTED AN UNDENTIFIED SOURCE AS SAYING THAT CHAWA WOULD LISTEN TO ANY NEW BRITISH PROPOSALS
BUT THAT THE CHINESE POSITION THAT SOVEREIGNTY AND ADMINISTRATION WERE UNDIVISIBLE WOULD NOT (NOT) CHANGE.