TNAG-0781-FCO40-985-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1978 — Page 200

PER CAT A

R3 520

FM PEKING 238703Z

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

TO PRIORITY FCO TELNO.668 OF 23.19.78..

INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG.

YOUR TELNO.630:

78

AIR SERVICES.

ра

HKK184/1

601

RECEIVED IV REGISTRY NO. 51 240071978

DK OFFICER

INDEX

PA

Seendas

RESISTRY Action Taken

रहा

566

1.

195

WE NOTE THAT BA ARE NOW SHOWING MORE ENTHUSIASM FOR AN AIR SERVICES AGREEMENT. WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE COMPRE-1 HENSIVE PAPER, REFERRED TO IN ALLEN'S LETTER OF 31 AUGUST TO STABLES, AND HOPE THAT WE SHALL HAVE A FURTHER CHANCE TO COMMENT BEFORE WE RECEIVE INSTRUCTIONS,

2. IT STILL SEEMS TO US THAT THE CHINESE HAVE AT LEAST AS MUCH TO GAIN FROM AN AIR SERVICE AGREEMENT AS OURSELVES, AND THAT WE SHOULD NOT APPEAR TO BE IN TOO MUCH OF A HURRY. THE CONTINUED UCHINESE USE OF KAI TAK PROGRESSIVELY WEAKENS THE FORCE OF SOME OF THEIR DEMANDS IN RELATIONS TO CAL, WHILE THE FACT THATCOMPARATIVELY FREQUENT CAAC USAGE HAS BEEN ALLOWED HAS

ALREADY REDUCED ANY BARGAINING POWER WE MIGHT DERIVE IN AIR SERVICE

TERMS FROM CHINESE FLIGHTS TO HONG KONG.

3. WE STILL THINK IT RIGHT TO RESIST THE IDEA OF A STATEMENT, AT LEAST UNTIL WE KNOW WHAT OTHER POINTS REMAIN TO BE SETTLED. BUT WE DOUBT WHETHER WE SHALL GET AN AIR SERVICES AGREEMENT WITHOUT SOMETHING. WE HAVE THEREFORE BEEN CONSIDERING POSSIBLE FORMULAE. AS WE SAID IN OUR TELNO.631 THE LOWEST KEY STATEMENT WOULD BE A REFERENCE (EG HAVING REGARD TO THE STATEMENT BY HMG IN THE JOINT COMMUNIQUE ON THE EXCHANGE OF AMBASSADORS IN 1972'') IN THE PREAMBLE OF THE AGREEEMENT. AS SOMETHING A LITTLE LESS LOW KEY, BUT NEVERTHELESS PRESERVING THE PRINCIPLE THAT NOTHING IS CHANGED IN RELATION TO TAIWAN BY THE AGREEMENT, YOU MIGHT CONSIDER

CONFIDENTIAL

/ A STATEMENT