STATIONING PLA TROOPS IN HONG KONG
The Joint Declaration provides for China to station
military forces in Hong Kong SAR after 1997 for the purpose
of defence but states that they "shall not interfere in the
internal affairs of the HKSAR". Following Tiananmen Square,
this provision understandably caused considerable concern amongst Hong Kong people. We have urged the Chinese on a number of occasions and at Ministerial level to treat this
matter with sensitivity. The Chinese made clear on each
occasion that the question had been settled in the JD and that these were sovereign matters for the Chinese. We propose to revert to the subject in the context of JLG discussions on defence lands, when we will stress that there
is little practical need for a large and prominent PLA presence in Hong Kong after 1997. But we believe it would be counterproductive to revert to the issue before then.
RIDAFO/7