CONFIDENTIAL
Visits outside Peking
14.
There are several good, but no outstanding, options
for the limited time available (about 2 days). All those
suggested below would get Lord Carrington back to London on
the morning of 7 October. (Flying times China-London vary
between 15 and a half hours (Urumqi-London) and 23 and three
quarter hours.) To the best of our and the MOD's knowledge
they are all practicable but in some cases (notably those
involving Urumqi and Chengde) this is subject to confirmation.
(a) is Sir P Cradock's first choice:
(a)
Shanghai, with a side trip to Suzhou (or
Hangzhou). Shanghai would not be an
original choice but it is China's premier
industrial city and a major political and
cultural centre. There is also a small
British community. Subject to Ministers'
views and the manpower situation, we may
want to open a subordinate post there.
A side trip by train to Suzhou, a pleasant
town of canals and traditional Chinese
gardens, could easily be managed in a
day (5 October). Hangzhou could also be
undertaken in a day. If Lord Carrington
wished to go somewhere a little more
exotic, he could (either instead of or as
well as Suzhou) stop off for a few hours
on his way back to London on 6 October at
Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Province
in the far west of China (the exit route
from Urumqi could pose problems but we
anticipate that they could be resolved);
(b) Xian, in central China, the historic capital
of several China dynasties. Lord and Lady
Carrington could visit the Rolls-Royce plant which is turning out Spey 202 engines under a contract signed in 1975 and/or the
spectacular burial ground of the first
Chinese Emperor Qin Shihwang. This could
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