SECRET
Prime Minister
CPIAGE
HONG KONG: AIRPORT PROJECT
bane
&
You have agreed that I should go ahead with my plans to visit Hong Kong and China early next month.
WE
The main aim of my visit will be to try to come to a better political understanding with the Chinese on increased consultation and cooperation over Hong Kong issues. We need to maintain the authority of the Hong Kong Government and resist the Chinese demands for a right of veto over the financial management of the territory before 1997. But
well equally we shall not have discharged our responsibilities towards the people of Hong Kong if the transfer of sovereignty takes place in an atmosphere of mistrust and recrimination. We new, if we can get it, a steady
China Leading up to the
In this context, plans for the new airport have acquired critical significance. Chinese support for the project is probably essential if it is to attract private sector participation. It would also provide a substantial boost to confidence in Hong Kong and set important
precedents for the future. But our search for Chinese
support must not compromise the Hong Kong Government's overall control of the project or its existing financial
powers.
Guilin g practical cooperation with
hand to ver.
The Chinese accept that Hong Kong needs a new airport if it is to maintain its position as a leading financial and economic centre in the region. But they are still concerned about the cost of the project and its financial implications
LLJAAS/1
SECRET