CONFIDENTIAL
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CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG (AMENDED DISTRIBUTION 21/1)
TO PRIORITY FCO
TELNO 301
OF 21104OZ JANUARY 88
INFO PRIORITY PEKING
@
171614
MDLIAN 3944
ния rend 243/9
;)
мом
22 JAN 1988
VICER
2)
MY TELNO 260 : VISIT TO HONG KONG BY VICE MINISTER QIAN QICHEN
p.a.
also
243/ECUITS para 3)
VICE FOREIGN MINISTER QIAN QICHEN PAID A COURTESY CALL ON ME
THIS MORNING. AFTER OPENING COURTESIES HE SAID THAT HE KNEW THAT
I HAD HAD A GREAT DEAL OF CONTACT WITH ZHOU NAN AND KE ZAISHOU ON
HONG KONG MATTERS. I SAID THAT WE SAW COOPERATION BETWEEN THE TWO
SIDES AS VITAL FOR THE SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JOINT
DECLARATION AND THE MAINTENANCE OF PROSPERITY AND STABILITY IN
HONG KONG. THESE CONTACTS WERE VERY USEFUL, AS WERE THE REGULAR
MEETINGS THAT YOU HAD BEEN ABLE TO HAVE WITH WU. QIAN SAID THAT
IN THE PAST THESE LATTER MEETINGS HAD BEEN NARROWLY FOCUSSED ON
HONG KONG. HE EXPECTED YOUR MEETING WITH WU IN ARCH TO COVER A
WIDER RANGE OF ISSUES.
2. I TOLD QIAN THAT I HAD BEEN STRUCK, ON MY RETURN TO HONG KONG AS GOVERNOR, BY THE CLOSENESS OF CONTACTS BETWEEN HONG KONG AND GUANGDONG. THERE HAD BEEN A GREAT INCREASE IN OUR ENTREPOT TRADE.
MUCH OF THIS WAS CARRIED BY THE RAILWAYS AND ENDED UP IN OUR CONTAINDER PORT, WHICH WAS NOW ABOUT THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD. MANY HONG KONG COMPANIES ALSO HAD ENTERPRISES IN GUANGDONG:
LEAST A MILLION PEOPLE IN GUANGDONG WORKED FOR THEM. IT WAS
IMPORTANT THAT WE SHOULD MAINTAIN CLOSE CONTACTS WITH THOS
RESPONSIBLE FOR PLANNING EXPANSION IN GUANGDONG SO THAT OUR
FACILITIES WERE EXPANDED IN ACCORDANCE WITH LIKELY DEMAND. QIAN
SAID THAT GUNAGDONG HAD DEVELOPED RELATIVELY RAPIDLY. THERE
WAS GREAT INTEREST IN HONG KONG INVESTMENT THERE AND THE USE OF
GUANGDONG LABOUR BY HONG KONG INDUSTRIALISTS.
AT
3. WE TALKED BRIEFLY ABOUT RELATIONS BETWEEN THE PRC AND THE SOVIET
UNION. QIAN SAID THAT BILATERAL TRADE HAD RECENTLY INCREASED: BUT
THAT THERE HAD BEEN NO REAL IMPROVEMENT IN POLITICAL RELATIONS. THE SOVIET UNION HAD NOT MADE ANY REAL MOVES ON THE THREE CHINESE
DEMANDS. I SAID THAT WE IN HONG KONG WATCHED THE SITUATION IN
KAMPUCHEA WITH PARTICULAR INTEREST BECAUSE OF ITS RELATIONSHIP
TO THE PROBLEM OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES. THE NUMBER OF REFUGEES IN
HONG KONG WAS INCREASING: IN 1987 ARRIVALS HAD BEEN UP 50 PER CENT
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