1 HRB 027/1
RESTRICTED
¡FER
RESTRICTED
FM PEKING
TO PRIORITY
TELNO 185
FCO
OF 280337Z JANUARY
88
AND TO PRIORITY HONG KONG, SINGAPORE, ULAN BATOR
~22
013376
MDLIAN 5604
Лим
FOLLOWING FOR FED:
YOUR TELNO.85. MINISTERIAL VISITS TO CHINA.
1. I SEE NO OBJECTION TO THE PROPOSED DATES OF MR PARKINSON'S AND LORD GLENARTHUR'S VISITS. HOWEVER, I HAVE A NUMBER OF POINTS TO MAKE ABOUT THE SUGGESTION THAT MR FOWLER'S VISIT SHOULD ALSO BE ACCOMMODATED IN THE SAME MONTH (BEARING IN MIND THAT A VISIT BY LORD LANE, THE LORD CHIEF JUSTICE, IS ALREADY SCHEDULED FOR THE END OF
MAY).
•
2. FIRST, ALTHOUGH WE COULD AT A PINCH MANAGE THE PLANNING FOR THREE MINISTERIAL VISITS BY DIVIDING RESPONSIBILITY BETWEEN DIFFERENT MEMBERS OF CHANCERY AND COMMERCIAL SECTION, THE OVERALL LOAD ON THE EMBASSY (PARTICULARLY FOLLOWING A GAP OF SOME SIX WEEKS BETWEEN MYSELF AND MY SUCCESSOR AND AT A TIME WHEN SOME KEY STAFF WILL BE ON LEAVE) WOULD BE CONSIDERABLE AND WOULD LEAVE US LITTLE CAPACITY FOR OTHER WORK. A WILD CARD IN ALL OF THIS IS THAT THE HEAD OF CHANCERY, WHO WOULD NEED TO PLAY A LEADING ROLE IN PLANNING FOR MR FOWLER'S AS WELL AS LORD GLENARTHUR'S VISITS, MIGHT HAVE TO RETURN TO LONDON FOR A JLG MEETING SOME TIME IN JUNE.
3. IT IS ALSO A GREAT DEAL TO ASK MY SUCCESSOR TO TAKE ON DURING HIS FIRST MONTH, AND I HOPE YOU WOULD CONSULT HIM ON HIS RETURN TO LONDON (OR BY TELEGRAM IN MAURITIUS) BEFORE REACHING ANY FINAL AGREEMENT WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS. IT MUST BE BORNE IN MIND IN THIS CONNECTION THAT IT CAN TAKE THE CHINESE AS MUCH AS FIFTEEN DAYS TO ARRANGE FOR THE PRESENTATION OF CREDENTIALS.
4.
FINALLY
I THINK YOU SHOULD GIVE CAREFUL THOUGHT TO THE WISDOM OF BUNCHING SO MANY VISITS TOGETHER IN THE CONTEXT OF THE OVERALL MANAGEMENT OF OUR BILATERAL RELATIONS WITH CHINA. TAKING THE VISITS OF WU XUEQIAN MR VIGGERS, SIR DAVID ORR (WHO WILL BE TREATED AS BEING OF MINISTERIAL RANK) AND THE CHIEF OF THE AIR STAFF ALSO INTO ACCOUNT, THE SPRING MONTHS OF 1988 ALREADY LOOK DECIDEDLY OVER-LOADED, WHILE SO FAR AS WE KNOW THERE ARE NO SIMILARLY HIGH
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