TNAG-1142-FCO40-1422-Hong-Kong-and-the-Falkland-Islands-crisis-1982 — Page 75

GR 320

CONFIDENTIAL

DESKBY FCO 211100Z

DESKBY PEKING 211200Z

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG 211815Z MAY 82

TO IMMEDIATE F C O

TELEGRAM NUMBER 531 OF 21 MAY

AND TO IMMEDIATE PEKING

copied Personal

Sir J. Cater

NAGO.

TOP COPY

ཟ

020/2

Hick NSREČASER, NE

2. 4 MAY ANDA

27

FROM GOVERNOR FOR DONALD

FALKLANDS

NO

"24/5 Rs 25

Jee/29

1. A DELEGATION OF UNOFFICIALS LED BY SIR S.Y. CHUNG AND MR LOBO

CALLED ON ME THIS EVENING TO ASK ME TO CONVEY TO HMG AN EXPRESSION OF THEIR SUPPORT FOR HMG IN THE FALKLANDS CRISIS

ANNOUNCE

AT THIS TIME. THEY SAID THAT THEY WISHED THIS SUPPORT TO BE BOTH MORAL AND MATERIAL. THEY WERE AT PAINS TO SPELL THIS OUT IN

TERMS OF THE FOLLOWING FORMULA, VIZ, ''A TOKEN CONTRIBUTION OF POUNDS TWENTY MILLION IS OFFERED BY HONG KONG IN RECOGNITION

OF HMG'S EFFORTS IN SEEKING AN HONOURABLE AND PEACEFUL SOLUTION TO THE FALKLLAND ISLANDS DISPUTE'. THEY WOULD LIKE TO THE OFFER PUBLICLY IN THESE TERMS, AND BEFORE ANY SERIOUS HOSTILITIES COMMENCED BECAUSE OF THEIR CONCERN WITH POSSIBLE REACTIONS IN PEKING. THEY WERE SEEKING TO EXPRESS THEIR SUPPORT

AS A MEMBER OF THE BRITISH COMMONWEALTH AND WOULD LIKE IT TO BE KNOWN NOT ONLY TO THE GOVERNMENT BUT TO THE BRITISH PEOPLE''.

2. I TOLD THEM THAT I WAS SURE THAT THEIR EXPRESSION OF MORAL SUPPORT WOULD BE WARMLY RECEIVED IN LONDON. AS REGARDS THE MATERIAL CONTRIBUTION, SINCE THEIR OBJECTIVE WAS TO BE HELPFUL TO HMG, I THOUGHT THAT IT WOULD BE WISE FIRST TO CONSULT YOU ON WHETHER SUCH SUPPORT WOULD BE WELCOME, AND IF SO WHAT FORM IT SHOULD TAKE. THE PROBLEM OF TIMING COULD BE OVERCOME BY MAKING CLEAR IN ANY EVENTUAL PUBLICITY THAT THE OFFER HAD BEEN MADE TODAY. THEY WERE CONCERNED THAT HONG KONG SHOULD BE' KNOWN TO HAVE BEEN QUICK TO OFFER SUPPORT AT THIS TIME.

30

(32

CONFIDENTIAL

/ 3. I SHOULD

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