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173644
MDLIAN 5083 ·
11. THE SPANISH AMBASSADOR SAID AT HIS BRIEFING THAT HUMAN RIGHTS HAD MAINLY BEEN DEALT WITH THROUGH DIPLOMATIC CHANNELS DURING PREPARATIONS FOR THE VISIT. THE SUBJECT ALSO CAME UP WHEN GONZALEZ AND THE CHINESE DISCUSSED PEKING'S BID FOR THE 2000 OLYMPICS. HE TOLD JIANG ZEMIN THAT CHINA WOULD NEED TO TAKE MEASURES TO IMPROVE ITS IMAGE BY APRIL AT THE LATEST, GIVEN THAT THE OLYMPIC COMMITTEE WOULD TAKE ITS DECISION IN SEPTEMBER. FOREIGN MINISTER QIAN QICHEN TOLD SOLANA THAT THE CHINESE INTENDED TO TAKE SOME STEPS BUT DID NOT SPECIFY WHAT THEY WERE. THE CHINESE PRESS GAVE THE WRONG IMPRESSION THAT GONZALEZ HAD GIVEN THE CHINESE BID HIS BACKING. THE AMBASSADOR SAID THAT GONZALEZ HAD DESCRIBED THE CHOICE OF CITIES AS A SPORTING MATTER AND NOT ONE FOR GOVERNMENTS. IF PEKING WAS CHOSEN, THE SPANISH GOVERNMENT WOULD BE HAPPY TO PROVIDE ADVICE BASED ON THE BARCELONA EXPERIENCE.
COMMENT
12. THIS WAS A SHORT BUT INTENSIVE VISIT, FOR WHICH BOTH SIDES WERE CLEARLY WELL PREPARED. SPAIN'S TRADE WITH CHINA HAS BEEN GROWING RAPIDLY AND WILL HAVE DERIVED NEW IMPETUS FROM THE VISIT. THE CHINESE LEADERSHIP WILL HAVE WELCOMED THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR INTERNATIONAL ACCEPTABILITY AND TO INCREASE PROPAGANDA PRESSURE AIMED AT OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TO ABANDON RESTRICTIONS ON THEIR RELATIONS WITH CHINA. WHEN GONZALEZ'S POLITE COMMENTS SEEMED TO THEM NOT TO GO FAR ENOUGH, THE CHINESE MEDIA WERE HAPPY TO ADJUST THEM ACCORDINGLY.
MCLAREN
YYYY
MAIN
54
.CHINA TRADE
ECONOMIC ADVISERS
FED
ERD
ESED
HKD
DISTRIBUTION
70
PAGE
EASD/ODA
PS/MR GOODLAD
PS/PUS
SIR J COLES
MR MILES
MR HUM
4
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