TNAG-0858-FCO40-1068-Proposed-UK-China-bilateral-shipping-agreement-1979 — Page 6

TELE-LETTER

TO: PEKING

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

HKC 145/2

RELEV

2 8 AUG 1979

INDEX

NO

J28.8

$1

RY

P.A.

(6J

Hdilling or J228

t

128

FILE REFERENCE: MRS 091/301/1

FOLLOWING FOR T J B GEORGE ESQ PEKING

COPIED TO: R C SAMUEL ESQ FED FCO

THIS

COPY

R JT MCLAREN ESQ HKGD FCO

FOR

FROM:

M S MORRIS ESQ SP DOT

D C WILSON ESQ POLITICAL ADVISER HONG KONG

A J RAMSAY MAED FCO

UK-PRC MARITIME AGREEMENT:

1.

HONG KONG

In paragraph 4 of your tele-letter of 13 August you asked

whether any procedure outside the Agreement is necessary to make

the terms apply to Hong Kong.

2.

No instrument is needed simply to apply the Agreement to

Hong Kong. Whether or not the Agreement does apply to Hong Kong

is a matter of treaty interpretation. The UK view is that in the

absence of a contrary intention a treaty applies to the whole of

a State's territory. As the Agreement now stands we would

certainly argue that no contrary intention has been expressed or

? whatever implied. We would have to ensure that whether amendments might

be made to the Agreement it would still be interpreted as applying

to Hong Kong.

3.

Kong could enact its own legislation.

If legislation were required to implement the Agreement

this could be extended to Hong Kong by Order in Council or Hong

But this is a question

/ of

CONFIDENTIAL