Sabe
CONFIDENTIAL
FM HONG KONG
TO IMMEDIATE F CO
TELNO 2689
OF 28113OZ AUGUST 91
CONFIDENTIAL
Phats 099/2
TOP COPY Q DIST?
INFO IMMEDIATE UKREP JLG HONG KONG, PEKING, SEOUL
(77
042132 MDHIAN 0357
1
APEC/HONG KONG
FOLLOWING A FINAL ROUND OF INFORMAL BILATERAL CONSULTATIONS CONDUCTED IN SEOUL LAST WEEK BY KOREA AS THE HOST GOVERNMENT FOR THIS YEAR'S APEC MINISTERIAL MEETING WITH HONG KONG, CHINA AND TAIWAN, SEPARATELY AND INDIVIDUALLY, THE KOREANS REPORTED TODAY TO THE APEC SENIOR OFFICIALS MEETING (SOM) NOW BEING HELD IN KYONGJU THAT A CONSENSUS HAD BEEN REACHED ON THE ADMISSION OF CHINA, TAIWAN AND HONG KONG INTO APEC. AS A RESULT, THE SOM AGREED TO RECOMMEND TO THEIR MINISTERS QUOTE THAT THE THREE BE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE IN APEC AS FULL PARTICIPANTS AT THE THIRD MINISTERIAL MEETING IN SEOUL IN NOVEMBER THIS YEAR UNQUOTE. THE FULL TEXT OF THE PRESS STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE SOM TODAY IS AT
MIFT.
2. THE TERM QUOTE FULL PARTICIPANTS UNQUOTE WAS USED BY THE KOREANS IN THE PRESS STATEMENT AT MIFT AGAINST OUR ADVICE. YOU ARE AWARE OF CHINA'S SENSITIVITIES ON THE USE OF THIS PHRASE (TELNO 366 OF 26 JULY 1991 FROM UKREP JLG HONG KONG). ALTHOUGH UKREP JLG HONG KONG HAS NOT GIVEN ANY UNDERTAKING TO THE CHINESE SIDE NOT TO USE THIS PHRASE, WE OURSELVES HAVE AVOIDED USING IT IN OUR OWN PRESS STATEMENT ISSUED TODAY IN RESPONSE TO THE ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SOM. FULL TEXT OF OUR STATEMENT IS AT 2ND
IFT.
3.
AS REPORTED EARLIER BY UKREP JLG HONG KONG (THEIR TELNO 384 OF 9 AUGUST 1991, NOT REPEATED TO SEOUL), HONG KONG'S PARTICIPATION IN APEC HAS ALREADY BEEN AGREED WITH CHINA. AS A RESULT, THE ONLY PROBLEMS WHICH REMAINED TO BE SORTED OUT IN SEOUL LAST WEEK RELATED TO TWO STICKING POINTS BETWEEN CHINA AND TAIWAN, I.E. THE DESIGNATION AND COMPOSITION OF THE TAIWANESE DELEGATION TO APEC. ACCORDING TO THE KOREANS, THEY WERE ABLE TO OFFER COMPROMISES WHICH THE TWO SIDES WERE ABLE TO ACCEPT JUST
BEFORE THE SOM.
4. ON DESIGNATION, THE COMPROMISE WAS QUOTE CHINESE TAIPEI
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CONFIDENTIAL