TNAG-1263-FCO40-1606-Parliamentary-contacts-on-the-future-of-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 65

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This looks v. out of date

v. out of date 3/12

Hal Miller MP rang by way of follow up to your conversation with him in the Lobby on Tuesday. He had communicated the facts back to his source in Peking and had been given an extremely open and blunt message, the main points of which were as follows:

i)

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ii)

iii)

iv)

v)

vi)

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the Peking Government doubted the British commitment. They had had four rounds of talks and had on the fifth round been given. a verbal message by Mr Caldsworthy at the Embassy in Peking. They had hoped that this. would lead to progress but there had beer none;

MKK040/16

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

-DEL 1983

DESK OFFICEK

British negotiators continually asked w Chinese policy was, but the Chinese position was well known and was openly discussed in newspapers!)

the British side have put forward no new suggestions on the discussions and their negotiators were too guarded. This made the Chinese side suspicious;

the Chinese were also suspicious about the considerable number of MPs who had visited Hong Kong recently. They assumed that this was part of the process of ensuring Parliamentary approval for an agreement on Hong Kong;

the Peking Government were very concerned about meetings taking place in Hong Kong of groups like 'I Love Hong Kong'. These meetings were, according to the Chinese, being used by the Taiwan authorities.

PA

LE MAY

von Taker.

7 CH16/12

the Chinese were perfectly happy to hold informal discussions anywhere. The head of the New China News Agency in Hong Kong had full authority to lead discussions on their behalf at any level, informally or more formally.

рениаву ни

Presmaly infl the people, not time?

/Mr Miller