TNAG-2243-FCO40-3224-Most-favoured-nation-status-for-China-impact-on-Hong-Kong-1991 — Page 59

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China. He was a bit out of touch with latest developments but thought that the Senate would need to make a judgement in June (in practice, they had 45 days from 3 June). This was one area where the President had difficulty also with his own party, and he might have underestimated the degree of opposition overall. Nonetheless, Biden's judgement was that the President should be able to prevail.

SOVIET UNION

CC:

(£)

The Secretary of State brought him up to date on the question of Soviet attendance at the Economic Summit. Biden commented that, as yet, he had seen nothing that added up to a proper economic development plan for the Soviet Union - this despite having spent five hours with the Harvard Group and Jablinsky. Even that plan would not inspire US companies to invest in the Soviet Union a year or so down the road. Indeed, Biden said that, as Jablinsky was leaving, his parting shot from the taxi was "I am not sure that I completely trust Gorbachev"! The

Harvard-Jablinsky plan was also different from the message which Primakov would be bringing. The problem was that the Russians just did not know how to put together a plan.

Mr Prentice, Private Office

Heads:

Soviet Dept

Yours ever,

Что

Jand

D A Burns

NB4AAL

Chanceries:

NPDD

FED

HKD

News Dept

SIC, NIO

Dublin

Peking Moscow

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