TNAG-2032-FCO40-2895-Visit-by-Douglas-Hurd--Secretary-of-State-for-Foreign-and-Co-1990 — Page 68

FOREIGN SEC:

SPRECH

HONG KONG GENERAL CHAMBER OF COM BRCB 15 JABUARY 1990

5.

FORBIGE SECRETARY (CONTD).

The Joint Declaration 18 the best framework;

it requires a

continuous discussion on equal terms with the Chinese Government and

it is frankly trivolous to pretend otherwise;

anyone who does

pretend otherwise can have no real standing as a friend of Hong

-

which

Kong, but it would be frivolous, too, to pretend that the Agreement

marks the end of our problems. What we have to do is to turn the

Joint Declaration into reality and that means working on matters of

maticulous, sometimes technical detail; it means conducting

18 not always easy a tenacious, consistent dialogue with the

Chinese Authorities, a dialogue which is neither hostile nor

autoen vieni,

Fugue which alum at the Yong wirow rallime

C

quicà tricà and which always suEAU to judge and serve Lue реб

interests of Hong Kong. That is what we are on about, that is what

we are committed to and that is what we shall carry through.

They, the Chinese loadership, have conf med their commitment

to the Joint Declaration and that is welcome. Our relations with

China are going through a difficult period but we need and want to

rebuild them; that is important to Britain and it is important to

Hong Kong that we should de 50.

Hong Kong, too, needs a good relationship with China not only

because of its future as a Special Administrative Region of China

but also because China is increasingly important as a valuable back-

up to Hong Kong's own manufacturing industry. It is quite clear to

me from what, I bave read and heard particularly in these last days,

that llong Kong bas a key role to play as an economic bridge between