THE DEPARTMENT*
OF TRANSPORT
MA 184/39312
RECEIVED IN REGISTRY
3 AUG 1993
Room S6/11
2 MARSHAM STREET LONDON SWIP 3EB TELEX 22221 DIRECT LINE 071-276 5399 SWITCHBOARD 071-276 3000
GTN 276
Fax: 071 276 5390
My Ref:
BY FAX
POLICY IN CONFIDENCE
DESK OFFICER
REGISTRY
Your Ref:
यव
WOEY
PA
Action Taken
Mrs E M Bosher
Mr Hait
ہے
Sext
Lower Albert Road
Hong Kong
by
conf
piceley
301-7.
w'hon
30 July 1993
Deputy Secretary
Economic Services Branch
Hong Kong Government
Dew Elizabette,
HONG KONG/US ASA TALKS
fax to
RECEN 81/21
DESK C- INDEX
EB 3
36
Chub 1993
Thank you for your letter of 23 July, in which you ask us to try to secure that talks on the Hong Kong/US ASA are able to go ahead in the week of 20 September.
I am pleased to say that, in the context of our US/UK talks this week, we have been able to agree a timetable which would accommodate the Hong Kong talks in that week. The week is blanked off in the diaries of the US side and of Rod Balme and Judith Ritchie, who would be attending from here.
We have suggested to the Americans that we might sensibly have consultations on proposed increases in charges at Los Angeles airport on Monday 20 September. Our thinking was that these consultations are of close interest to Cathay Pacific who might well wish to attend.
If that arrangement is confirmed, the ASA talks could proceed on 21 September and continue, if necessary, to 24 September.
Before publicising the scheduling of the talks, however, you will want to be aware of a conversation which Paul Gretch of the US DOT had with Rod Balme in the margins of our talks this week. The conversation took place at Gretch's request. He stressed that the US side did not want to go into talks unless there was a strong possibility of success: meeting and failing to agree would be a good deal more damaging than not meeting at all and would seriously damage the prospects of a successful outcome later. The US side realised that they could not expect to satisfy all their constituents in these negotiations. However, they had to be able to satisfy enough of them to enable them to face down the remainder. Gretch identified the following key features that he would need in order to be able to sell an agreement: