CO537-2187 — Page 91

Copy.

(F 9769/376/G)

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54145

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FOREIGN OFFICE, S.W.1.

29th July, 1947.

Dear Leo,

Thank you for your letter No. $/0 545 (8704/1077/47) of the 3rd July enclosing copies of correspondence with Menon on the subject of the Chinese Government's attitude towards Macao.

·

I agree that the terms of your reply in no way sell the pass either of Macao or of Hong Kong. I wonder if you had this purpose in mind in omitting to mention in your reply that the operative instrument governing Macao's status is, of course, the Sino-Portuguese Treaty of 1888, which confirmed "the perpetual occupation and government of Macao and its dependencies by Portugal. 10 See in this connexion my letter dated the 26th April to Mayle, of the Colonial Office, a copy of which was enclosed in our despatch No.284 of the 30th April, on the subject of the Chinese claim to Macao made in connexion with the recent Anglo-Chinese civil aviation discussions. As pointed out in that letter, Macao was never formally ceded to Portugal as Hong Kong was to Great Britain, and there may accordingly be some justice in the Chinese claim that Macao remains under Chinese sovereignty. It seems unnecessary, however, to go out of our way to point out to Menon this relative weakness in the Portuguese position over Macao. As you say, it is up to his own staff to produce this information for him.

I am copying your letter and this reply to Lisbon, Colonial Office and the United Kingdom High Commissioner in New Delhi.

L.H. Lamb, Esq., 0.B.E.

Nanking.

Yours ever,

(Sgd.) G.V. Kitson