UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
FM PEKING
TO ROUTINE DTI INTRA
TELNO INTRA 78
OF 110133Z MAY 92
INFO ROUTINE BTC HONG KONG, FCO
173542
MDLIAN 4633
$
19
DTI FOR OT2/2D
OUR INTRA 65: MOFERT BUYING MISSION TO EUROPE JUNE/JULY 1992
·
THE EC DELEGATION COMMERCIAL COUNSELLOR, BENNY SORENSEN, HOSTED A LUNCH FOR ZHOU KEREN, DIRECTOR OF MOFERT'S EUROPEAN AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT, ON 8 MAY. EC COUNSELLORS OR THEIR REPRESENTATIVES ALSO ATTENDED.
2.
ZHOU WENT OVER PLANS FOR THE MISSION, WHICH ARE LITTLE CHANGED FROM THOSE GIVEN US AT THE LUNCH WITH KERFOOT (TUR). HE DID, HOWEVER, SAY THAT THE MISSION MIGHT NOT VISIT ALL EC MEMBER STATES, AS CHINA PLACED VERY FEW ORDERS WITH SOME STATES. IN PARTICULAR, ZHOU SAID THAT THE MISSION MIGHT NOT VISIT DENMARK BECAUSE VICE PREMIER TIAN JIYUN IS DUE TO GO THERE SOON.
3.
ZHOU'S DEPUTY, BAI QICHEN, RAISED TWO ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS. MOFERT ARE KEEN TO RECEIVE INVITATIONS FROM THE MEMBER STATES, WHICH WOULD INDICATE GOVERNMENTS' WILLINGNESS FOR THE MISSION TO VISIT AND HELP THE MISSION WITH FORMALITIES. AS WE WOULD NOT WISH TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT WE WILL PAY ANY COSTS (SEE NEXT PARA), WE ARE KEEN TO AVOID GIVING THEM ANYTHING WHICH LOOKS LIKE A FORMAL INVITATION. THERFORE PROPOSE TO SEND A SUITABLY-WORDED LETTER FROM HERE.
4 =
WE
BAI THEN RAISED THE POSSIBILITY OF MEMBER STATES PAYING THE MISSION'S IN-COUNTRY COSTS. HE SAID THAT AS IT IS A MISSION OF OFFICIALS, COUNTRIES MIGHT WISH TO TREAT THE DELEGATION AS THEY WOULD OTHER OFFICIAL GROUPS. HE CLAIMED THAT GERMANY HAD ALREADY AGREED TO PAY THE GROUP'S COSTS FOR ALL BUT ONE DAY OF THEIR VISIT THERE (THE GERMAN COUNSELLOR SAID HE KNEW NOTHING ABOUT THIS). KERFOOT LATER SPOKE TO SORENSON WHO SAID THAT IT WAS IN FACT SPAIN WHICH HAD OFFERED TO PAY THE MISSION'S COSTS. OTHER STATES (EG THE NETHERLANDS) SAY THEY ARE DISINCLINED TO MAKE SUCH AN OFFER, NOR HAVE WE
1
PAGE UNCLASSIFIED