TNAG-1281-FCO40-1632-Chinese-visa-office-in-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 75

CONFIDENTIAL

HKK 349/1

RECEIVED IN RIGSTE NE

10 OCT 1983

DESK OLA

GR 420

CONFIDENTIAL

FM PEKING 070850Z OCT 93

TO PRIORITY FCO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 993 OF 7 OCTOBER

ROUTINE HONG KONG

MY TELNO 989: CONSULAR AGREEMENT

Enter

Mas wother or.

كم

1. THIS MORNING'S SESSION TURNED OUT TO BE WITH NIE GONGCHENG, THE HEAD OF CONSULAR DEPARTMENT AND MADAME XU'S IMMEDIATE SUPERIOR, ON THE MANCHEASTER CONSULAR DISTRICT, NIE SAID THAT THE CHINESE SIDE CONTINUED TO HOPE THAT WE WOULD GRANT TEN

COUNTIES. BUT HE MADE IT FAIRLY PLAIN THAT THEY WOULD SETTLE

FOR 9 IF THE BRITISH SIDE INSISTED ON IT. WE CONFIRM INCIDENTALLY

THAT PARAGRAPH 1 OF OUR TELNO 395 STILL STANDS.

2. ARTICLE 2 OCCUPIED MOST OF THE LENGTHLY MEETING. WE DEPLOYED WHOMERSLEY'S TEXTS AS AGREED, SAYING THAT IF SOMETHING ON THOSE

LINES COULD BE ACCEPTED BY THE CHINESE WE COULD ACCEPT THEIR

TEXT OF ARTICLE 2. A LENGTHY EXCHANGE FOLLOWED IN WHICH WE MAINTAINED STRONGLY THE NEED TO HAVE RECOGNITION THAT THERE

SHOULD BE AGREEMENT BETWEEN GOVERNMENTS ON DETAILS OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CONSULATES, AND IN PARTICULAR ON THE SITING OF THEM, AND THE CHINESE MAINTAINED EQUALLY STRONGLY THAT IT WAS NOT NECESSARY. IT BECAME CLEAR IN THE COURSE OF THIS THAT THE CHINESE WERE WORRIED INTER ALIA THAT WE MIGHT USE THE CLAUSE TO DICTATE WHERE THEY SHHOULD PUT THEIR CONSULATE: THEY CLAIMED WITHOUT EVEN BLUSHING THAT THEY WOULD NEVER SEEK TO DICTATE WHERE WE SHOULD PUT OURS IN SHANGHAI. WE SAID THAT IT

WAS MORE A QUESTION OF ENSURING THAT THERE WAS CONSULTATION WITH THE HOST GOVERNMENT SO THAT THE LATTER COULD INDICATE IF IT HAD ANY OBJECTION TO A PROPOSAL FOR THE SITING OF A CONSULATE. EVENTUALLY, AFTER CONSIDERABLE PRESSURE, NIE PROPOSED THAT WE SHOULD BOTH CONSIDER AN ENTRY OF SOME KIND IN THE RECORD OF THE NEGOTIATIONS WHICH WOULD MAKE CLEAR OUR RESPECTIVE POINTS OF VIEW. WE AGREED TO CONSIDER THIS.

*

3. ON ARTICLE 4 WE CONFIRMED WITH THE CHINESE THAT THE PHRASE

UNLESS OTHERWISE AGREED BY THE CONTRACTING GOVERNMENTS'' REMAINED IN THE TEXT.

CONFIDENTIAL

1 4. ON ARTICLE 7

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