Registry
No.
CURITY CLASMFICATION
Top Secret,
Secret.
Confidential.
Restricted.
Unclassified.
IVACY MARKING
CONFIDENTIAL
DRAFT
SPEAKING NOTE
Type 1 +
To:-
.......In Confidence
MACAO AIRPORT
From
T J DÁVID
Telephone No. Ext.
Department
CONSELLOR AT PORTUGUESE EMBASSY'S CALL ON HEAD OF
HONG KONG AND GENERAL DEPARTMENT: SPEAKING NOTE
1.
I understand that at the end of April your Ambassador
discussed with Mr Hibbert the Governor of Macao's
proposal to build an international airport at Macao and our own and the Hong Kong Government's reaction to it.
2. As our own note of 12 April to the Portuguese Embassy made
clear, we should be quite happy for the Hong Kong and Macao authorities to discuss the technical implications of the proposal but consider that the attitude of the Civil Air Authorities of the People's Republic of China should first be formally ascertained.
3. Our note was intended to indicate that we look to the
Portuguese authorities to seek the views of the Chinese authorities. I am sorry if this was not entirely clear to you but we think that this is the next step.
Defensive
If Sr. Barata says that the Portuguese cannot obtain a
formal view from the Chinese in the absence of diplomatic relations with the PRC.7
(a) We had understood from (Portuguese) press reports during Dr. Soares' recent visit to the United States that preparatory arrangements to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC were well under way.
(b) The authorities in Macao presumably have their own means of communicating with the Chinese and these might perhaps be used.
CONFIDENTIAL
Dd 108087 400M S&K 1/77
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