TNAG-0850-FCO40-1060-Future-of-Hong-Kong-New-Territories-leases-1979 — Page 155

172

7440

SECRET

SEGRET

LiKK 040/1

FM HONG KONG 300818Z JUL 79

TO PRIORITY FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE TELNO.1082 CF 30 JULY,

INFO PRIORITY PEKING.

1,

MY TELNO.1071: NEW TERRITORIES LEASES.

175

23. 51

34 JUL1979

Who

POLITICAL ADVISER SPOKE TODAY TO THE SECOND DIRECTOR OF THE NONA, LI JUSHENG, WHO HAS JUST RETURNED FROM AN EXTENDED VISIT TO PEKING. (HE IS A MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS AND ATTENDED THE RECENT SESSION).

2. P.A SPOKE AS IN THE AGREED TEXT, HANDING OVER COPIES OF THE SPEAKING NOTE IN ENGLISH AND CHINESE, HE THEN ADDED THAT WHAT WAS PROPOSED CALLED FOR NO ACTION ON THE PART OF THE CHINESE. IF ASKED, HOWEVER, WE WOULD HAVE TO SAY THAT WE HAD INFORMED THEM IN ADVANCE OF WHAT WE INTENDED TO DO. P. A ALSO SAID THAT, HAD LI BEEN IN HONG KONG IN EARLY JULY, WE WOULD HAVE SPOKEN TO HIM AT THE SAME TIME AS THE AMBASSADOR HAD SPOKEN TO SONG IN PEKING. WE PARTICULARLY WISHED THE NCNA TO KNOW WHAT WE INTENDED TO DO SINCE THEY, BEING ON THE SPOT, WOULD KNOW THE NECESSITY FOR ACTION OF THIS SORT TO MAINTAIN CONFIDENCE FOR CONTINUING INVESTMENT. P.A EMPHASISED THAT THE ACTION WE INTENDED TO TAKE WAS PERMISSIVE ONLY AND THAT WE WISHED TO ACT NOW WHEN IT WOULD BE RELATIVELY EASY TO DO SO RATHER THAN AFTER A CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE HAD DEVELOPED.

3. LI SAID THAT HE WAS AWARE OF WHAT THE AMBASCADOR HAD SAID TO SONG. PEKING NOW HAD A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT WAS

THE M.F.A INTENDED THAN WHEN THE GOVERNOR HAD SPOKEN TO DENG.

WAS PAYING CAREFUL ATTENTION TO THE MATTER AND HAD ALREADY MADE A PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS. HOWEVER, THE MATTER WAS COMPLICATED AND THEY WOULD NEED TO EXAMINE IT FURTHER. THEY WOULD LET US HAVE THEIR VIEWS, EITHER IN HONG KONG OR PEKING, SOMETIME IN, AUGUST. OVERALL, LI WAS PREDICTABLY NON-COMMITAL

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