XN000022-1984-02-28 — Page 8

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1984

A: WHY DIDN'T YOU ASK YOUR FIRST QUESTION IN ENGLISH (LAUGHTER}? OR ARE YOU COMPROMISING, ONE OF EACH? IF IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE DİD YOU SAY? NOW YOU ARE GETTING TO A STAGE WHICH IS FAR AHEAD.

WE ARE AIMING TO PRODUCE A SOLUTION. AND, AS I HAVE SAID, I BELIEVE IT IS ACHIEVABLE. A SOLUTION WHICH WILL BE ACCEPTABLE TO THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG. AND I MUST REMIND YOU OF SOMETHING THAT I BELIEVE I SAID LAST TIME: I BELIEVE THERE IS A CONVERGENCE OF INTEREST BETWEEN THE PARTIES. THERE IS A DESIRE TO SEE STABILITY AND PROSPERITY. IN WHOSE INTERESTS MIGHT IT BE NOT TO SEE THIS? THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT MUST WANT TO SEE THIS. WE CERTAINLY WANT TO SEE IT. AND ABOVE ALL THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG WANT TO SEE IT. NOW WE MUST WORK FOR THAT. WE MUST WORK FOR SUCCESS, THAT IS WHAT OUR MIND IS ON AT THE PRESENT TIME.

Q: BUT IF SOMEONE TELLS YOU THAT HE IS NOT HAPPY WITH THE PROPOSED AGREEMENT, WILL YOU TAKE THAT TO THE UK?

A: THERE ARE A LOT OF IFS IN POLITICAL LIFE. THESE ARE ALL FACTORS WE'LL HAVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT AND, AT THE END OF THE DAY, DON'T FORGET OUR CONSTITUTIONAL SYSTEM, IN BRITAIN I AM TALKING ABOUT. DON'T FORGET THAT IT IS PARLIAMENT THAT FINALLY HAS TO SAY YES OR NO AND THOSE MEMBERS HAVE THE RIGHT TO DETERMINE AND THEY WILL ALSO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE VIEWS OF THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG.

I WONDER IF I CAN TAKE IT FURTHER YOU HAVE EXPRESSED THE VIEW THAT YOU ARE HOPEFUL OF THE BEST POSSIBLE SOLUTION FOR HONG KONG AND THAT YOU FEEL THE PRESENT TALKS ARE OF A PACE DESIGNED TO ACHIEVE THAT OBJECTIVE. NOW, HONG KONG ITSELF IS A HIGHLY COMPLEX PLACE, THE CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING IT HISTORICALLY AND GEOPOLITICALLY ARE ALSO HIGHLY COMPLEX, ARE TALKS WHICH TAKE PLACE EVERY THREE TO FOUR WEEKS, AND AFTER ALLOWING FOR TRANSLATION ONLY CONSIST OF SIX HOURS OF EXCHANGES, LIKELY TO PRODUCE A DETAILED AGREEMENT WHICH WILL BE THE BEST POSSIBLE SOLUTION FOR HONG KONG? OR IS IT THAT THESE PRESENT TALKS BETWEEN DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA AND GREAT BRITAIN ARE DESIGNED TO REACH A BASIS OF AGREED PRINCIPLE FOR THE INTENSE NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN POLITICAL REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA AND GREAT BRITAIN ON THE DETAILS OF A COMPLEX AGREEMENT?

A: WELL, OF COURSE, IT IS REALLY FOR US TO JUDGE,

IT IS REALLY FOR US TO JUDGE, THE REGULARITY OF THE MEETINGS BETWEEN US AT OFFICIAL LEVEL IN PEKING IN THE CONTEXT OF US ALL WANTING TO MAKE REASONABLE PROGRESS, AND PROGRESS AS FAST AS IS REASONABLE - THAT IS THE BEST WAY OF PUTTING IT. BUT, OF COURSE, IN BETWEEN THE OFFICIAL TALKS WHICH TAKE PLACE THERE IS A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF INFORMAL CONTACT BETWEEN OUR TWO GOVERNMENTS. AND IF YOU COMBINE THE TWO THEN WE HAVE TO MAKE A JUDGEMENT OURSELVES, ABOUT THE PACE AND THE RANGE OF DETAIL THAT HAS TO BE DISCUSSED. YOU, I THINK, USED THE WORD 'COMPLEX'. YES, THERE ARE VERY MANY ISSUES INDEED TO DISCUSS AND ALL THIS TAKES TIME; IT IS INEVITABLE. AND, THEREFORE, THE COMBINATION OF THE HOLDING OF OFFICIAL TALKS AND THE INFORMAL CONTACT THAT WE HAVE, IT IS A MATTER FOR US TO JUDGE AT WHAT STAGE, AND HOW OFTEN WE MEET, AND WE LOOK AT THIS THE WHOLE TIME. AND, OF COURSE, AS YOU KNOW, THE DATES HAVE BEEN FIXED FOR THE NEXT MEETING IN MARCH AT AN OFFICIAL LEVEL.

/Q; BUT IS