CONFIDENTAL
CONFIDENTIAL, HMG/PRC EXCHANGES:
FLINE TO TAKE
Secretary of State and Governoz have agreed that
hese messages should be made public following references to them by the Chinese side. Chinese Elde
has been informeri.
14
Point of confidential exchanges in general, is to ensure that debato/discussion between States on difficult and sensitive issues can proceed in calm and rational way.
Not a means of hatching secret deals. In this case it enabled the best doal to be secured for the Hong Kong people in negotiations with the Chinese side.
At each point in the negotiations, Exco was kept fully in the picture.
Did not
Exchanges make clear that British side pressed hard for the interests of the people of Hong Kong. Pressed for faster pace of democratisation.
reach agronment with Chinese side on number of directly elected seats in 1995. Undertook to press
for more.
1990 GECHANGE : PUBLIC LING.
Chinese side appears to be claiming that British side have reneged on agreements about the composition of the Election Committee for the first SAR legislature.
Exchanges cake clear that this is not the case.
CO MAL
}