TNAG-2291-FCO40-3300-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-Taiwan-1991 — Page 33

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Taiwan: Ministerial Visits

The Secretary of State was grateful for your submission of 14 August. He thinks that the advice is rather cautious. He doubts whether the Scottish Secretary has a higher profile than, say, the French Minister of Industry. If the Chinese retaliate, for example by cancelling Lord Caithness' visit, they run the risk that a senior British Minister goes to Taiwan and that our partners then follow suit. The Secretary of State

accepts that if Mr Lang goes to Taiwan, other Ministers may want to follow and the Secretary of State would have to say no.

The Secretary of State would now like us to write to the Scottish Secretary's Private Secretary saying that the Foreign Secretary will decide after the Prime Minister's visit to China - could I please have a draft? In the meantime, he would like you to look positively at Mr Lang's request in the light of what we know about France's growing trade links with Taiwan. The Secretary of State would also welcome an assessment of how likely is China's retaliation against Hong Kong are there precedents?

27 August 1991

CC:

PS/Lord Caithness PS/Mrs Chalker

Sir J Coles

Mr Miles

Mr Cox, HKD

Mr Almond, Protocol Dept

CONFIDENTIAL

(S L Gass)