TNAG-0863-FCO40-1073-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1979 — Page 43

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CONDENTI AL

CONFIDENTIAL

HKK184/1

6 APR 1979

PA

195

FM CANBERRA 057660Z APR 79

TO IMMEDIATE FCO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 193 OF 5 APRIL

INDEX

No

INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG (GOVERNOR AND BCARFE)

864

192YOUR TELEGRAM NUMBER 122 OF 3 APRIL: UK/AUSTRALIA AIR SERVICES

1. COUNSELLOR (ECONOMIC) DISCUSSED THIS WITH RAINBIRD (DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT) TODAY. RAINBIRD SAID THAT HIS DEPARTMENT'S VIEW WAS

THAT AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE HONG KONG-AUSTRALIA FARES PACKAGE

BEFORE THE NEXT ROUND OF ASEAN-AUSTRALIAN DISCUSSIONS WOULD

EXACERBATE AUSTRALIA'S DIFFICULTIES WITH ASEAN. FOR A NUMBER OF

REASONS THE AUSTRALIANS WERE NOW PROPOSING THAT THE MEETING WITH

ASEAN SCHEDULED FOR 23 APRIL SHOULD BE DEFERRED UNTIL 30 APRIL, THOUGH THIS HAS NOT YET BEEN CONFIRMED. RAINBIRD WOULD PREFER TO

REASSESS THE POSITION IN THE LIGHT OF WHAT HAPPENS AT THE TALKS WITH

ASEAN.

2. SPEAKING IN CONFIDENCE, RAINBIRD EXPLAINED THAT MR NIXON HAD BEEN PROVOKED INTO MAKING HIS ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT THE NEW AIR FARES

BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND HONG KONG (HONG KONG TELEGRAM TO FCO NO 419. OF 27 MARCH), THE MINISTER REGRETS THAT HE MADE THIS ANNOUNCEMENT,

WHICH HAS PUT HIM IN A DIFFICULT POSITION. HIS OFFICIALS ARE

RECOMMENDING THAT HE SHOULD SAY NOTHING MORE ON THE SUBJECT UNTIL

AFTER THE MEETING WITH ASEAN.

TEBBIT

FILES

MAED

SPD

SEAD

HNGD

MR

CORMZZI

MISS

BROWN

MR MURRAY

SENT BY BAG BCARFE AND (GOV) HONG KONG

PIES SENT

CAD/DO7

CONFIDENTAL