File
No.
Addressed
DRAFT
INT 300/147/01
Your
Ref.
Tick as appropriate
S/O Letter
X
Unclass.
Draft by
Official Letter
X
In Conf.
X
Restricted
Mr Carter
Despatch
Conf.
Minute
Secret
Memo
Top Secret
IN CONFIDENCE
His Excellency Mr Maseo Fujioka
Asian Development Bank
Manila
For Signature by
JLF Buist
TEL
ENCLOSURES
REFERENCES, AND AMENDMENTS
FURTHER ACTION AND SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS
cc JN Powell Esq, FCO (HKD) K221, London SW1
PE Denison Esq, HM Treasury, Parliament Street, London SW1 Dr H M Schmid, UK Director, Asian Development Bank, c/o British
British Embassy Manila
Hong Kong Government (name to be provided by HKD) PAB Thomson Esq British Embassy Peking
Return to Room No.
UNITED KINGDOM'S GUARANTEE OF HONG KONG'S LIABILITIES TO THE
ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK
1. Under Article 3 of the Bank's Articles of Agreement, a
member is required to guarantee all the obligations which may be incurred by any other member for whose international relations it is responsible, until that member itself assumes such responsibility. As you know, the United Kingdom accepted responsibility under that Article for the obligations of Hong Kong when the territory became
a member of. the Bank in 1969.
2. You will also be aware that the joint declaration of the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the People's Republic of China on the question
1934 of Hong Kong was signed in Peking last December, and entered into force on 27 May 1985. Under that agreement, the Government of the
United Kingdom will restore Hong Kong to the People's Republic of
China with effect from 1 July 1997.
3. With that in mind, Her Majesty's Government recently raised
with the Government of the Peoples Republic of China the question of
a guarantee after 1 July 1997 of Hong Kong's obligations to the
Bank deriving from Hong Kong's membership. The Chinese Government have confirmed through an Exchange of Memoranda in Peking on
1985
14 October that, on the basis that the People's Republic of China
IN CONFIDENCE
/became