(35)
013632
MDHOAN 5253
Love & Logh
CONFIDENTIAL
23A AS
thing on/5 p..
CONFIDENTIAL
FM FCO
TO IMMEDIATE PEKING
TELNO 1364
OF 2118OOZ NOVEMBER 91
кв
INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG, BTC HONG KONG, UKREP JLG HONG KONG INFO ROUTINE ACTOR
کام
CHINESE AMBASSADOR'S LUNCH FOR SIR JOHN COLES: 20 NOVEMBER
1. SUMMARY: INFORMAL EXCHANGES ON VARIOUS BILATERAL AND HONG KONG ISSUES IN THE RUN-UP TO LORD CAITHNESS' VISIT. TRADE, CONCESSIONAL FINANCE, HUMAN RIGHTS, CFA, DEFENCE LANDS, ASAS ALL TOUCHED ON. BRIEFING OFFERED ON BAKER'S VISIT.
2.
DETAIL: AMBASSADOR MA, ACCOMPANIED BY HIS MINISTER ZHENG JINZHONG AND COUNSELLOR WANG YIHAO, GAVE LUNCH TO SIR JOHN COLES AND DAVIES FED, ON 20 NOVEMBER. THIS PROVIDED AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A FRANK BUT INFORMAL EXCHANGE OF VIEWS ON THE STATE OF BILATERAL RELATIONS AND ON THE PRINCIPAL HONG KONG ISSUES BEFORE LORD CAITHNESS' VISIT.
LORD CAITHNESS' VISIT AND BILATERAL RELATIONS:
3.
COLES SAID THAT LORD CAITHNESS' VISIT WAS IMPORTANT IN MAINTAINING THE INCREASED MOMENTUM OF POLITICAL EXCHANGES AND FELL CONVENIENTLY BETWEEN THE PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT AND NEXT YEAR'S VISIT BY FOREIGN MINISTER QIAN QICHEN (ON THE LATTER, WE AGREED THAT SINCE IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO PREDICT THE DATE OF THE ELECTION, DATES FOR THE VISIT SHOULD SOON BE WORKED OUT, POSSIBLY FOR MARCH, BUT ACCEPTING THAT THESE MIGHT NEED TO BE REARRANGED). OUR IMPRESSION AT PRESENT WAS OF A LOSS OF SOME MOMENTUM SINCE THE PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT PARTICULARLY ON HONG KONG ISSUES (SEE PARAGRAPHS 6 TO 8 BELOW). ON THE BILATERAL FRONT, TRADE THIS YEAR WAS VERY DISAPPOINTING. BRITISH COMPANIES HAD PUT A LOT OF EFFORT INTO CHINA, SUPPORTED BY ECGD AND CONCESSIONAL FINANCE. WE HOPED SOON TO SEE A CONSIDERABLE IMPROVEMENT. WITH REGARD TO A POSSIBLE THIRD CFA, WE WERE IN SOME DOUBT WHETHER CHINA WHOSE FOREIGN EXCHANGE RESERVES WERE CLOSE TO THE UK FIGURE (US DOLLARS 38 BILLION: IMF JULY 1991) REALLY NEEDED CONCESSIONAL FINANCE WHICH COULD IN ANY CASE COVER ONLY A SMALL PROPORTION OF UK EXPORTS. MA AGREED THAT TRADE THIS YEAR HAD FALLEN OFF BUT WAS OPTIMISTIC THAT, FOLLOWING VICE-PREMIER ZOU'S VISIT, CHINA WOULD
1
PAGE
CONFIDENTIAL