TUESDAY, JULY 31, 1984
SIR GEOFFREY HOWE RETURNS FROM PEKING
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THE BRITISH SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS, SIR GEOFFREY HOWE, RETURNED TO HONG KONG FROM PEKING TODAY (TUESDAY).
ON HIS ARRIVAL HE WAS MET BY THE CHIEF SECRETARY, SIR PHILIP HADDON-CAVE, THE SENIOR UNOFFICIAL MEMBER OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL SIR SZE-YUEN CHUNG, THE SENIOR UNOFFICIAL MEMBER OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, MR ROGER LOBO, AND MR LI CHU-WEN, VICE-DIRECTOR OF XINHUA NEWS AGENCY (HK BRANCH).
FOLLOWING IS THE FULL TEXT OF SIR GEOFFREY'S REMARKS TO WAITING JOURNALISTS AT KAI TAK.
+1 HAVE JUST COMPLETED FOUR BUSY DAYS IN PEKING. I HAVE HAD LONG DISCUSSIONS WITH CHAIRMAN DENG XIAOPING, PREMIER ZHAO ZIYANG, STATE COUNCILLOR JI PENGFE, AND THE FOREIGN MINISTER WU XUEQIAN.
+THESE MEETINGS AND OTHER DISCUSSIONS AT OFFICIAL LEVEL HAVE BEEN ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY DEVOTED TO HONG KONG.
+WHEN I ARRIVED HERE LAST WEEK FROM LONDON I SAID THAT THE NEGOTIATIONS WERE ON COURSE. MY INTENSIVE DISCUSSIONS WITH CHINESE LEADERS HAVE CONFIRMED THAT THIS IS DEFINITELY SO.
+THIS HAS BEEN A VERY PRODUCTIVE VISIT AND I LOOK FORWARD TO TELLING YOU MORE ABOUT IT AT MY PRESS CONFERENCE TOMORROW.
ACCOMPANYING SIR GEOFFREY FROM PEKING WERE:
THE GOVERNOR, SIR EDWARD YOUDE; SIR PERCY CRADOCK, DEPUTY UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE, FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE; SIR RICHARD EVANS, BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO PEK ING; MR R.J.T. MCLAREN, POLITICAL ADVISER TO HONG KONG GOVERNMENT DR D.C. WILSON, ASSISTANT UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE, FCO; MR L.V. APPLEYARD, PRINCIPAL PRIVATE SECRETARY; MR F. BURROWS, LEGAL COUNSELLOR, FCO MR P.J. GOULDEN, HEAD OF NEWS DEPARTMENT, FCO: MR A.C. GALSWORTHY, HEAD OF HONG KONG DEPARTMENT, FCO, AND MR P.F. RICKETTS, PRIVATE SECRETARY.
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