TNAG-1821-FCO40-2584-Emigration-from-Hong-Kong-1988 — Page 124

CONFIDENTIAL FM PEKING

TO IMMEDIATE FCO

TELNO 985

OF 270752Z MAY 88

CONFIDENTIAL

HELD

3415

P

empration

05700,6 MDHIAN 1017

31

INFO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG

YOUR TELNO.461

SUMMARY.

•

(140) HUB

only

PRESENTATION OF CREDENTIALS.

HIS

1. I DULY PRESENTED MY CREDENTIALS ON 27 MAY TO PRESIDENT YANG SHANGKUN. HIS RECEPTION WAS FRIENDLY AND GOOD HUMOURED. COMMENTS ON HONG KONG WERE REASSURING.

DETAIL.

AFTER HANDING OVER MY 2. THE CEREMONY WAS SIMPLE AND DIGNIFIED. LETTERS AND JOINING A GROUP PHOTOGRAPH, I HAD ABOUT HALF AN HOUR'S CONVERSATION WITH YANG SHANGKUN. HE WAS ALERT AND SEEMED A SPRY ''YOUNG'' 81. I RECALLED AND REPEATED HM THE QUEEN'S CONGRATULATIONS AND GOOD WISHES ON TRHE OCCASION OF HIS APPOINTMENT AS PRESIDENT. HE EXPRESSED THANKS AND ASKED THAT HIS GOOD WISHES SHOULD BE CONVEYED TO HER MAJESTY IN TURN. I REFERRED TO THE INVITATION TO THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS OF WALES TO VISIT CHINA AND SAID THAT I WOULD BE APPROACHING THE FOREIGN MINISTRY IN THE NEAR FUTURE ABOUT PRECISE DATES. THE PRESIDENT SAID THAT THEIR ROYAL HIGNESSES WOULD BE MOST WELCOME AND HE PAID SOME GRACIOUS COMPLIMENTS TO THE ROYAL

COUPLE.

3. ON BILATERAL RELATIONS, YANG AGREED RELATIONS WERE NOW THE BEST EVER AND THERE WERE NO POLITICAL PROBLEMS THAT WE COOULD NOT SOLVE BETWEEN US. I REFERRED TO OUR HOPES OF EXPANDING THE DIALOGUE IN ALL AREAS. I COMMENTED THAT ALTHOUGH OUR POLITICAL RELATIONS WERE EXCELLENT, WE HAD MUCH GROUND TO MAKE UP IN PRACTICAL ECONOMIC, THE PRESIDENT COMMERCIAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL COOPERATION. AGREED.

4. ON HONG KONG, I SPOKE OF OUR GREAT JOINT RESPONSIBILITY TO GUARANTEE THE FUTURE STABILITY AND ROSPERITY OF THE TERRITORY AND OF

YANG AGREED THAT TRANSLATING THE JOINT DECLARATION INTO PRACTICE.

THIS JOINT RESPONSIBILITY WAS AT THE CENTRE OF THE CURRENT SINO-BRITISH RELATIONSHIP. OUR AGREEMENT WAS AN UNIQUE VENTURE WHICH COULD BE A MODEL FOR OTHERS IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS. HE

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