TNAG-0862-FCO40-1072-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1979 — Page 33

f

GR 430

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL ·

HKCK 184/1

DESKBY 397839Z

JAN

No

FM JAKARTA 300608Z JAN 79

Агора

TO IMMDEIATE F C O

TELNO 41 OF 30 JANUARY

AND TO IMMEDIATE SINGAPORE AND CANBERRA

1.

INFO ROUTINE TO BANGKOK KUALA LUMPUR MANILA HONG KONG (FOR GOVERNOR AND BCARFE) AND WELLINGTON

YOUR TELNO 50 TO CANBERRA: UK/AUSTRALIAN AIR SERVICES.

1. THE UK AHS SO FAR BEEN ABLE TO REMAIN IN THE BACKGROUND HERE ON

THIS SUBJECT. MINISTERS AND THE PRESS HAVE CONSISTENTLY REFERRED

TO THE 'AUSTRALIAN POLICY'' FOR CHEAP FARES BETWEEN AUSTRALIA

AND THE UK. ALTHOUGH BRITISH INTEREST IN MAKING THE SCHEME WORK

IS RECOGNISED, WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN CREDIT BY THE PRESS FOR SENSITIVITY TO ASEAN'S CONCERNS, PARTICULARLY STOPOVER FARES. I SEE NO REPEAT NO ADVANTAGE IN OUR NOW ATTEMPTING TO PLAY A LARGER ROLE UNLESS

THERE WERE SOME SIGN. THAT THE ASEAN STATES OTHER THAN SINGAPORE HAD

BEGUN TO REASSESS THEIR POSITION IN TERMS OF THEIR CIVIL AVIATION

INTERESTS. UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE NO EVIDENCE THAT THE INDONESIANS

WILL MOVE IN THIS DIRECTION AT PRESENT. MOST IMPORTANTLY, THEY HAVE

TAKEN UP A POLITICAL POSITION BASED ON ASEAN SOLIDARITY WHICY THEY

WILL BE RELUCTANT TO ABANDON WITHOUT A LEAD FROM SINGAPORE,,

MOREOVER THE DIRECTORATE-GENERAL OF AIR COMMUNICATIONS AND GARUDA, WHO ALONE UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEXITIES OF AIR SERVICES NEGOTIATIONS,

AND THE EXTENT TO WHICH INDONESIA'S INTERESTS IN THIS FIELD DIVERGE

FROM THOSE OF SINGAPORE, HAVE NOT RECENTLY PLAYED ANY PART

1

IN FORMULATING INDONESIAN POLICY. KARDONO AND RISAKOTTA SEEM TO HAVE DECIDED TO LIE LOW, AND SENT A VERY JUNIOR OFFICIAL TO THE 8 11 JANUARY MEETING IN CANBERRA, THEY HAVE SPENT THE LAST WEEK IN

TOKYO NEGOTIATING WITH THE JAPANESE,

CONFIDENTIAL

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