TNAG-0782-FCO40-986-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1978 — Page 3

GRS 350

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

LAST PAPER

FM WASHINGTON 220100Z DEC 78

TO ROUTINE DEPT OF TRADE

TELEGRAM NUMBER ALLOT 288 OF 21 DECEMBER

INFO HONG KONG

PA

HKK 184/1

(169).

RECEIVED IN REGARY NO. 51

DEC 1978

INDER

OFFICER

REGISTRY

Action Taken

No

U.S. AIR SERVICES TO CHINA.

1. FOLLOWING THE ANNOUNCEMENT BY PRESIDENT CARTER THAT RELATIONS

WITH CHINA WOULD BE NORMALISED, PAN AM HAS ASKED THE CAB FOR

PERMISSION TO BEGIN FLIGHTS BETWEEN SAN FRANCISCO AND PEKING ON JANUARY 1 1979. THE PROPOSAL IS FOR THREE SERVICES PER WEEK. ONE WOULD BE NON-STOP BUT THE OTHER TWO WOULD OPERATE AS EXTENSIONS

OF PAN AM'S CURRENT SERVICES BETWEEN SAN FRANCISCO AND HONG KONG.

??

2. YESTERDAY'S AVIATION DAILY INDICATES THAT ALTHOUGH NORTHWEST,

PAN AM AND TRANSWORLD OBTAINED CAB PERMISSION MANY YEARS AGO TO

SERVE MAINLAND CHINA. THIS WAS IN THE CONTEXT OF A BILATERAL

AGREEMENT SIGNED IN DECEMBER 1946 WHICH THE U.S. ''SWITCHED TO

TAIWAN AFTER IT BROKE OFF RELATIONS WITH MAINLAND CHINA. CAB

OFFICIALS ARE, THEREFORE, SCEPTICAL ABOUT WHETHER ANY OF THESE

THREE AIRLINES WILL BE ABLE TO SERVE CHINA WITHOUT A NEW BILATERAL

AIR SERVICES AGREEMENT BEING NEGOTIATED FIRST. A REPORT IN THE

NEW YORK TIMES QUOTES A STATE DEPARTMENT SOURCE AS SAYING THAT AS

A PRACTICAL MATTER THE FIRST STEP TOWARDS THE CPENING OF AIR

SERVICES SHOULD INDEED BE SUCH AN AGREEMENT. THE SOURCE IS ALSO

QUOTED AS SAY ING THAT A TASK FORCE HAS BEEN SET UP TO DEAL WITH

COMMERCIAL RELATIONS IN GENERAL AND THAT IT IS FAIR TO SAY THAT

THE SENTIMENT IS TO GIVE AVIATION HIGH PRIORITY SINCE IT WILL BE

USEFUL IN SETTING THE STAGE FOR OTHER AGREEMENTS.

CONFIDENTIAL

13. NO

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