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Mr. Deng Xiaoping said that previous Governments had already solved bigger and more difficult issues. If the Hong Kong problem were to be solved during the Prime Minister's period in office, it would mean that Britain's colonial era
had been brought to an end. This would redound to British
credit
The British Government should therefore support China's policy and decisions on this issue. He hoped that both sides would co-operate and handle the issue in such a way
as to maintain the prosperity of Hong Kong.
The Prime Minister said that there was still a certain
amount of misunderstanding between the two sides. She wished to clarify the position so that comprehension was complete.
That
As regards sovereignty we understood China's position. She had explained to Mr Zhao Ziyang that it was for that reason that for the last ten years we had not reported to the United Nations on Hong Kong as a colonial territory. Under existing treaty arrangements 92 per cent of the total area i.e. the New Scheduled Territories would return to China in 1997. She was not asking for an extension of the lease. left the treaty arrangements covering Hong Kong and Kowloon. China did not recognise these treaties but she believed that they were valid in international law. Her aim was that, if those treaties were to be changed, they should be changed by agreement and not abrogated by one side or another.
She was striving to come to an agreement that was acceptable to China and the people of Hong Kong and would maintain prosperity and would be accepted by the British Parliament.
Mr. Deng Xiaoping had referred to the maintenance of prosperity between now and 1997. It was not only British investors who were involved but investors from the United States Japan, Australia and from other parts of the world who invested in the territory. Many had put their whole savings and their whole future in Hong Kong. An investment
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