TNAG-0850-FCO40-1060-Future-of-Hong-Kong-New-Territories-leases-1979 — Page 140

CONFIDENTIAL

183

H. KCD

HKK. Duo/1

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London SW1A 2AH

NG. 3

31 August 1979

3 SEP 1979

Dear Michael

INDEX

J

ра

82 3/4.

Forthcoming Announcements and Publications: Land Leases in the New Territories of Hong Kong

You asked me yesterday if we could provide answers to two questions raised by the Prime Minister about item four in my letter of 23 August, listing forthcoming announcements envisaged by the FCO. This was the item about revised arrangements for issuing land leases in the New Territories of Hong Kong, in relation to which the Prime Minister asked:

a)

and b)

whether the forthcoming visit of the Chinese

Premier, Hua Guofeng, means that this announcement will be particularly sensitive;

if so, whether thought has been given to changing the timing of the announcement to take account of the Hua visit.

We are by no means certain yet that this announcement is going to be made. We have still not received the Chinese response to the proposals we put to them in July. Once we have it, we shall be considering what the next steps should be, and in doing so one of the factors we shall take into account is what effect those steps will have on the Hua visit. We should certainly wish to change the timing of the announcement if there seemed to be any chance that it might spoil the atmosphere for the Chinese Premier's visit, though this seems unlikely. If, as we hope, the Chinese indicate that they have no objection to our going ahead with the proposals we put to them, then the announcement should be relatively straight- forward.

ever,

Yours

Siphan

J S Wal1

M O'D B Alexander Esq 10 Downing Street

CONFIDENTIAL