-T T! '

HKIAIS

CONFIDEN TIAL

ним осог

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

2 1 JAN 1986

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

REGISTRY FROM: A C GALSWORTHY,

DATE: 17 January 1986

PA

Action Taken

M

Mr Shepherd

ECD (E)

cc: Dr Wilson

NEGOTIATIONS WITH CHINA OVER HONG KONG AND THE GATT:

BRIEFING

THE COMMISSION

ALE

HKD

со

1.

You will have seen UK Rep Brussels telno 117 proposing

that they should now brief the Commission rather more fully

on these negotiations.

2.

There are clearly some

attractions in doing this.

We

shall certainly want to brief our allies and the Commission

about what is proposed for Hong Kong when the right time

present proposal has arisen out of UK Rep's

comes.

did

The

knowledge that

because SO

consulting

talked now

to

in Tran

have we

We Geneva,

it became clear that the Chinese had been

Tran informally and that he had been taking an

unsighted line. Tran told us specifically (UKMis

(UKMis Geneva

telno 1) that he was not reporting these

the Comission, and that he did not want

revealed in Brussels.

matters back to

his role to be

3.

little a

I am however

proposal to brief now.

nervous about UK Rep

Brussels'

progress

in

in

The problem is timing. We are

still at

a very delicate

of stage

the negotiations

Peking. It looks as though we are making some

the technical discussions. But a political decision by the

Chinese is still required, and those who will take it

remain

suspicious very

we thought

lobbying against them and in favour of Our position

internationally, it could just turn things the wrong way.

There is a lot at stake on this.

of us.

If they

were

CON FID EN TIAL

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