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available to Hong Kong in connection with airport
development. It is not a new idea, of course, but
might be worth looking at in the light of the new
approach to aid. This is initially attractive to us
since it would have the political advantage of giving
tangible assistance for Hong Kong development without
nothing moking coffital grants to coming up against the well-known objections to granting
Hong Kong, capital aid. Economically, of course, it
could be extended without risk and could, presumably,
be linked to UK participation in the project.
$
I think it would be looked at in Hong Kong in a
different light from eg, the payment of consultancy
fees. The fact that much larger sums would be involved
would in itself be attractive. It could be argued
that the loan facility was made available as an
acknowledgement of the UK's interest as Administering
Power in Hong Kong's general development and in par-
ticular her recognition that the airport itself is
network. an important link in BOAC's world air-links.
5.
Traffic rights at Hong Kong provide valuable
bargaining counters in air services negotiations with
other countries to the benefit of UK airlines as well
as those based in Hong Kong. There is, as you know,
a great deal of resentmentin Hong Kong that we secure these
benefits for UK airlines after refusing to make any
contribution to the construction of the airport. It
would therefore be a great help to us vis à vis official
and unofficial opinion in the Colony if we could point
to a substantial contribution that we had made to the
development of the airport.
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