TNAG-0863-FCO40-1073-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1979 — Page 11

GR 900

CONFIDENTIAL

DESKBY CANBERRA 27020OZ

FM FCO 26180OZ APRIL 79

TO IMMEDIATE CANBERRA

TELEGRAM NUMBER 136 OF 26 APRIL

CONFIDENTIAL

(216

HER184/8 20.51

WOLX

30 APR 1979

TRY

No

J1.5

See Lia

AND TO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG (GOV AND BCARFE), SINGAPORE, KUALA LUMPUR PRIORITY BANGKOK, JAKARTA, MANILA

INFO SAVING WELLINGTON,

UK/AUSTRALIAN AIR SERVICES

TALKS WITH AN AUSTRALIAN DELEGATION WERE HELD HERE

FROM 23-25 APRIL ABOUT THE LINE WHICH AUSTRALIA PROPOSED

TO FOLLOW IN THE NEXT MEETING AT OFFICIAL LEVEL WITH ASEAN

COUNTRIES IN KUALA LUMPUR FROM 2-4 MAY. ROWLAND LEDFOR

THE AUSTRALIANS, ACCOMPANIED BY HAMILTON, QANTAS, AND COOK, AUSTRALIAN HIGH COMMISSION. ROGERS, DOT, LED THE UK DELEGATION WHICH INCLUDED REPRESENTATIVES OF FCO, CAA, HONG KONG GOVERNMENT, BA AND CATHAY PACIFIC.

2. ROWLAND CONFIRMED THAT THE ATMOSPHERE HAD BEEN IMPROVED BY THE JAKARTA MEETING IN MARCH. HOWEVER POLITICAL CONSIDERATIONS

STILL DOMINATED THE ASEAN POSITION.

THIS WAS HOW SINGAPORE COULD HOLD THE APPARENTLY UNITED FRONT TOGETHER, BECAUSE SO FAR THE AVIATION SELF-INTEREST OF THE OTHER ASEAN MEMBERS WAS BEING OVERRIDDEN. SINGAPORE' S MAIN CONCERN SEEMED TO BE THE INTERESTS OF SIA: TOURISM HAD BEEN LARGELY

DISREGARDED AT THE JAKARTA MEETING.

THE AUSTRALIANS WERE DISAPPOINTED THAT THEIR ATTEMPTS TO SET UP BILATERAL MEETINGS TO DISCUSS SECTOR FARES MET WITH NO RESPONSE, DESPITE THE AGREEMENT AT JAKARTA, ALTHOUGH

QANTAS HAVE NOW HAD SOME JOINT DISCUSSIONS WITH MAS AND THAI INTERNATIONAL. THERE WAS HOWEVER LITTLE CONSIDERATIONS OF FARES AT THESE DISCUSSIONS.

WIR

3. ROWLANDS REPORTED THAT THE MEETING AT OFFICIAL LEVEL IN JAKARTA (PARAGRAPH 7 OF YOUR TELNO 182) HAD BEEN VERY DIFFICULT. INADEQUATE PREPARATORY WORK HAD BEEN DONE ON

CONFIDENTIAL

/ THE