TNAG-1158-FCO40-1438-Visit-by-Margaret-Thatcher--UK-Prime-Minister--to-Hong-Kong--1982 — Page 147

CONFIDENTIAL

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PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT TO JAPAN, CHINA AND HONG KONG: POSSIBLE STOPOVER IN MOSCOW

Problem

1.

The Prime Minister is visiting the Far East in September. By far the quickest route is via Moscow. Should this route be ruled out for political reasons?

Recommendation

2.

I recommend that:

a.

b.

we should seek the views of Sir C Keeble on the likely Soviet attitude to the Prime Minister over-flying the Soviet Union with a stopover in Moscow;

subject to Sir C Keeble's views we should propse to No. 10 that the possibility of the Prime Minister using this route should be kept open until after the NATO Summit in June.

3. I submit a draft teleletter to Moscow, copied to Peking and Tokyo.

Background and Argument

4. Mr Hall's minute of 25 February explained the relevant advantages of the route via Moscow. Since there is also interest in the Prime Minister stopping over in the Gulf States, the obvious answer would be for the Prime Minister to fly out to the Far East via Moscow, returning via the Gulf.

5.

However, the question of a stopover in Moscow raises political considerations. When the Prime Minister fleto Tokyo via Moscow in June 1979 to attend the Economic Summit, Kosygin (who was then Soviet Prime Minister) went out to the airport to meet her and they had more than an hour's conversation over dinner. In present circumstances, a similar meeting between the Prime Minister and a Soviet leader, even one of such short duration, would probably

/be unacceptable

CONFIDENTIAL