TNAG-0377-FCO40-423-Defence-and-Oversea-Policy-Committee-review-of-UK-relations--1973 — Page 73

T

Sir John Hunt KCB Cabinet Office LONDON SW 1

CONFIDENTIAL

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London S.W.1.

12 October 1973

5

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tas P/A

Goodfly w

Dear John

Thank you for your letter of 4 October about the

state of Hong Kong's relations with the United Kingdom.

I agree that it would be useful to set up a group

at official level as you propose.

Because of the timetable imposed by events in Hong

Kong and elsewhere, action on a number of the issues

mentioned in the Foreign & Commonwealth Secretary's minute

will have to go forward independently of the general

review of our relations with the Colony which it is proposed

the group should undertake. It is not possible at the

moment to foresee exactly how these issues may be resolved

or what in consequence might be the eventual content of a

DOP paper designed to set the scene for the Prime Minister's

visit to Hong Kong. But we welcome the proposed group as

of

helping to secure that the issues affecting

Hong Kong are dealt with in such a way as to balance the

a means

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