are only a few of the detailed assurances written into the agreement. And under the terms of the agreement all these provisions will be contained in a Basic Law for Hong Kong to be passed by the National People's Congress of China, and will remain unchanged for 50 years.
In the view of the Government the draft agreement provides a basis. which will allow Hong Kong to continue to flourish and maintain its
unique role in the world as a major trading and financial centre. It is for this reason that in the White Paper the Government, have strongly commended the agreement to the people of Hong Kong and to
Parliament.
The Joint Declaration and its three annexes together make up an international agreement, legally binding in all its parts.
We are confident that the Chinese Government will implement an international agreement into which they have freely entered. As
Foreign Minister Wu Xuequian acknowledged in a recent address to the
Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the Joint Declaration is a "form of international treaty": it has "the same force in international law and is legally binding" Both the British and Chinese Governments take pride in their impressive record in observing international agreements. Furthermore the agreement takes proper account of the interests of both sides including the enormous interest that Britain and China share in Hong Kong's continuation as the dynamic society it is today.
•
The international reaction to the agreement has been most encouraging. It has been almost universally welcomed by Foreign
governments as providing the basis for a continuing strong, pro sperous and free Hong Kong. The Secretary-General of the United Nations has pointed to it as an example to other countries of how international questions should be settled peacefully. Reactions in commercial and financial circles have been very positive.
The response in Hong Kong has also been encouraging. Members will recall that an Assessment Office was established in the territory to
test the acceptability of the agreement, and that its activities have been monitored by an independent Monitoring Team. The reports