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SECRETARY OF STATE'S SPEECH IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS DEBATE:
HONG KONG
On 26 September British and Chinese negotiators initialled a
draft agreement on the future of Hong Kong. The people of Hong Kong have been invited to give their views on this agreement, and an
Assessment Office has been established to receive and collate those
views. The report of this office together with that of the
independent monitoring team will be laid before the House, and I
know that members will want to study them carefully before we debate
the draft agreement.
The draft agreement represents, as many members from both sides
of this House have been kind enough to say, a considerable
achievement for British diplomacy. In the course of two years
arduous negotiation we believe we have secured satisfactory
guarantees for the future stability and prosperity of Hong Kong.
The Joint Declaration and annexes constitute a formal international
agreement, legally binding in all its parts. It is the highest form
of commitment that can be given by one sovereign state to another.
It is an agreement which the Government can strongly commend to
the people of Hong Kong and to Parliament. It provides the
necessary assurances about Hong Kong's future to maintain the
confidence that is Hong Kong's life blood.
As I have made clear the House will have an early opportunity
to debate this matter.
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