TNAG-0840-FCO40-1049-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-China-1979 — Page 51

both of us

expansion.

share a wish to see that there is no Soviet

I donts think that necessarily is directed

against anybody, its directed against our own survival,

not directed against future of the Soviet Union.

PS:

Nonetheless it means that our relations

with the two are essentially on a slightly different footing.

The Soviet Union is a potential adversary; China, if not

a potential ally, there is at least a substantial community

of interest. That I would have thought must influence Moscow's

relations with us, and ours with them.

LC:

Any relationships you have with a foreign

country must be a two way traffic. No British government

in its senses would seeks an adversary relationship with the

Soviet Union which entails the maintenance of very expensive

defence forces and all the rest of it, unless there is a need

to do so. Of course we are in favour of detente, but it is

a two way traffic. I dont believe that it is possible for us

to have an ordinary friendly relationship with the Soviet

Union until, in military terms, until detente becomes a

reality, and one sees some evidence of a decline in the growth

of military spending in the Soviet Union. But that isnt to

say that you cants haveperfectly good relations with them,

, but that you keep a wary eye open when you see what's

happening.

PS:

I think thats one of the things Chairman

What do you expect

Hua will be quite glad to hear when he comes here. He is

of course coming later this month. that visit to produce?

LC:

We shall be showing Chairman Hua first of

all what he wants to see and I hope he will want to see what

we want to show him. We want to show him some of our modern technology, and some of our factories, and some of our plants,

and some of the other things that we are proud of. I hope

that it will lead to commercial contacts. I am sure that

it will lead to a greater understanding and friendship, and

I hope from there we can build on our relationship together.

PS:

Lord Carrington, thank you very much.