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Government statement on PLA advance party
In response to further press enquiries on statements by Mr Cheng Shousan, Deputy Director of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs's Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, a government spokesman issued the following statement today (Monday):
"The request by the Chinese side to station PLA advance personnel in Hong Kong before July 1, 1997 is a matter of confidential discussions in the Joint Liaison Group (JLG).
"We were shocked therefore to see details of these talks being publicly revealed by a senior Chinese official yesterday. This is a serious breach of JLG confidentiality about which we have protested strongly to the Chinese side today.
"As we have made clear on a number of occasions recently, the Chinese request is still in the discussion stage. We have asked the Chinese side a number of specific questions and are awaiting detailed answers from them before we can take the discussions forward.
"We must emphasise again that no decision has been taken and no agreement has been reached on the Chinese side's request for the stationing of PLA advance personnel in Hong Kong before the handover.
"The community is naturally very sensitive about this issue and would expect the British side to proceed carefully and cautiously. The Governor has made it clear that any arrangement agreed would involve a minimum number of troops who would be subject to Hong Kong law before July 1, 1997.
"On the question of members of the advance party bringing weapons with them, as suggested by Mr Cheng, we do not see the need for this, nor do we believe the community would see that this was either necessary or desirable."
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