NOTE OF A MEETING WITH MR WONG (PMG HONG KONG) HELD ON FRIDAY 9 FEBRUARY
Present:
Mr Wong
Mr Davies
R1
Hong Kong
Mr Inglis
BNSC
Mr Close
BNSC
Mrs Darvell Sols C
Miss Major } Miss Handcock) Mr Chamberlain Mr Northern
FCO, Hong Kong Desk FCO, Legal Adviser FCO, SEND
Mr Davies passed on Mr Goddard's apologies for not being able to take the chair and said he would take on this role. Mr Davies welcomed Mr Wong and explained that the purpose of the meeting was for PMG Hong Kong to brief the UK on what Hong Kong intended to do about the licensing of ASIASAT and to obtain information on how the UK licensing system works.
Mr Wong explained that he hoped to discuss the issues raised in the recent exchange of telegrams between the FCO and PMG Hong Kong vis a vis the ASIASAT launch, and to discuss the pros and cons of the various options. The ASIASAT launch was in a launch window 13-20 April. The UK
a party to four international conventions: Registration, Liability for Damage, Principles and the Return of Astronauts. The purpose of the visit was to discuss possible courses of action in the ASIASAT case which would be affected by these four conventions.
Miss Major suggested that the meeting should address the issue of consultation with the Chinese first. Mr Inglis agreed that once this aspect was clarified, it would be easier to evaluate the various options. The advice given from Hong Kong in telegram 468 implied that no prior consultation was required whether we opted for an extension of the Outer Space Act 1986 under section 2 (3) or section 15 (6). Mr Inglis sought confirmation from the FCO that extension of the Act under section 2 (3) would not require prior consultation with the Chinese. Miss Major said that we only need to consult the Chinese if we extend
The four new IRO's (International Rights and Obligations) to Hong Kong. UN Conventions on Outer Space matters affected Hong Kong well before the signing of the Joint Declaration. However, Hong Kong would be obliged to consult the Chinese if the UK Act was extended to Hong Kong when it was subsequently localised. Mr_Chamberlain agreed that the provisions of the Joint Declaration only applied to new IRO's, but thought that a policy decision needed to be taken on whether to consult the Chinese.
Mr Inglis said that it would be preferable to extend the Act under section 2 (3) than entering a contractual arrangement with ASIASAT for three reasons. Firstly, a contractual arrangement would not be enforceable under criminal law. Secondly, identification of "consideration" in a contractual arrangement would seem to present difficulties. Finally, it was doubtful whether Hong Kong had the necessary expertise at present to carry out the technical and insurance assessment required under the licensing procedures. BNSC on the other hand had had the administrative experience of the cases to date.