TNAG-1281-FCO40-1632-Chinese-visa-office-in-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 98

CONFIDENTIAL

Mr. Hoare

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PS/Mr Luge

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FROM: R D CLIFT,

HKD

DATE: 1 AUGUST 1983

cc: PS/PUS

Mr Donald

NTD

FED

PCD

Consular Dept

Mr Whomersley) Legal Mr Burrows

) Advisers

CHINESE VISA OFFICE IN HONG KONG

1.

2.

Please refer to your minute of 1 August.

Four of the provisions of the draft Understanding go beyond the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR). I attach a copy of our telno 434 of 12 July to Peking which gives full details. The reason is that these are additional privileges and immunities which the Chinese have agreed in principle to accord to us in the UK/China Consular Agreement. On the basis of reciprocity, it is therefore appropriate for us to offer equivalent treatment to the Chinese. For the better protection of our consular officers, it is standard practice for our Consular Agreements with Communist countries to provide wider privileges and immunities than those provided for in VCCR.

3. We do not intend to grant the more extensive personal inviolability provided for in paragraph 2(3) of the draft, unless the Chinese agree to the UK/China Consular Agreement being similarly phrased.

With regard to paragraph 1(b) of your minute, we shall ask Hong Kong to confirm that there are no problems before

4.

They

Peking present the draft to the Chinese. In practive I am

wonies on this sure. confident that they have no considered the problem in detail for montus.

haur

1 August 1983

HKK 349/1

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

- 3 AUG 1283

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CONFIDENTIAL

R D Clift

Hong Kong Department