TNAG-2180-FCO40-3117-Hong-Kong-nationality-international-support-1990 — Page 67

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FM BONN

TO TELELETTER FCO

TELELETTER

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THD 34011

ико

! RECEIVED

EGISTRY 02 MAY 1990

213

013330

MDTTAN 8012

OF 181054Z APRIL 90

INFO TELELETTER HONG KONG

DESK OFFICER INDEX

REGISTRY

PA

Action Taken

FROM:

TO:

SK SIMON, BRITISH EMBASSY, BONN PA MAJOR, HONG KONG DEPT, FCO

COPIED TO: HONG KONG

OUR TELNO 487: INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR HONG KONG

SUMMARY

1. MFA SAY PRESS REPORT IN TUR DID NOT EMANATE FROM BONN.

DETAIL

2. I SPOKE TO SCHEEL (HEAD OF MFA'S FED) ON 17 APRIL, AND COMMENTED THAT THE PRESS ARTICLE OF 12 APRIL SUGGESTED THAT THE MFA DISAGREED

WITH WHAT MR MAUDE HAD SAID IN HIS SPEECH ABOUT THE GERMAN SCHEME.

WE WERE AWARE THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WERE NOT ABLE TO GIVE

PASSPORTS OR SPECIAL CITIZENSHIP TO HONG KONG CHINESE BUT THE

RELEVANT PASSAGE IN MR MAUNDE'S SPEECH HAD BEEN BROADLY FORMULATED

IN ORDER NOT TO LEAVE THIS IMPRESSION: AND THE PASSAGE HAD BEEN

CLEARED VERBATIM WITH THE INTERIOR MINISTRY (WHO LEAD ON

RESETTLEMENT).

3. SCHEEL, JUST BACK FROM A WEEK'S HOLIDAY, WAS UNSIGHTED BUT UNDERTOOK TO LOOK INTO THIS PROBLEM. HIS COLLEAGUE LAMBSDORFF RANG UP LATER TO SAY THE MFA'S NEWS DEPARTMENT HAD NOT ISSUED ANY

STATEMENT ABOUT MR MAUDE'S SPEECH. IT APPEARED THAT ALL THE PRESS

COMMENT HAD COME FROM HONG KONG. I REPEATED WHAT I HAD SAID TO

SCHEEL, TO ENSURE THERE WAS NO MORE CONFUSION ON EITHER SIDE.

4. A REPORT IN THE FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ON 17 APRIL INFERRED FROM

THE RESERVED REACTION AT VARIOUS DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS IN HONG KONG

THAT LONDON HAD NOT CHECKED WITH E.C. PARTNERS BEFORE MR MAUNDE MADE HIS SPEECH. BUT THERE HAS BEEN NO OTHER PRESS COVERAGE SINCE THEN CAS FAR AS I CAN ASCERTAIN).

SIGNED S K SIMON

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