SECRET
VIEWS OF HER MAJESTY'S GOVERNMENT ON THE AGREEMENT
27. As recorded in para 10 above, Her Majesty's Government have sought to see whether on the basis of proposals put forward by the Chinese Government arrangements could be constructed which would ensure lasting stability and prosperity for Hong Kong. They have negotiated energetically and they believe successfully to secure an agreement which meets the needs and wishes of the people of Hong Kong. The negotiations have been hard and long, and subject to the common aim of both sides to maintain stability and prosperity in Hong Kong. Taking the agreement as a whole Her Majesty's Government are confident that it does provide a framework in which the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong can be maintained after 1997 as a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of
China.
28. The text of the agreement has been initialled by both sides. This represents a certification by the negotiators that it represents accurately the outcome of the negotiations. However, as is normal with international agreements negotiated between nations there is no realistic possibility of amending the text. The
agreement must be taken as a whole.
29.
Her Majesty's Government have a duty to make clear beyond any possibility of misunderstanding the alternative to acceptance of the agreement set out in this White Paper. In their view, there is no possibility of an amended agreement. The alternative to acceptance of the present agreement is to have no agreement. In this case the Chinese Government have made it plain that negotiation could not be reopened and that they would publish their own plan for Hong Kong. There is no guarantee that such a unilateral plan would include all the elements included in the draft agreement, nor would it have the same status as a legally binding agreement between the two countries. Whether or not there is an agreement between Her Majesty's Government and the Chinese Government the New Territories will revert to China on 1 July 1997 under the terms of the 1898 Convention of Peking. The remainder of Hong Kong (Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and Stonecutters Island) would not be viable alone. Hong Kong, including the New Territories, has since 1898 become an
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