TNAG-2352-FCO40-3422-Visits-by-Lord-Caithness--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-and--1991 — Page 19

RESTRICTED

RESTRICTED

FM HONG KONG

TO PRIORITY FCO

TELNO 3295

OF 211144Z OCTOBER 91

INFO PRIORITY PEKING, BTC HONG KONG

SAVING SHANGHAI

HKD Ø

8624/1

210

063677

MDLIAN 8406

YRTELNO 1240 TO PEKING: VISIT BY LORD CAITHNESS

1. AS YOU POINT OUT, LORD CAITHNESS' BRIEF VISIT TO HONG KONG ON 4 DECEMBER WILL COINCIDE WITH THAT OF TRHS THE DUKE AND DUCHESS

OF KENT. TRHS ARE DUE TO SPEND THAT DAY IN MACAU BUT WILL ARRIVE AT GOVERNMENT HOUSE IN THE LATE AFTERNOON, PRECEDED BY THEIR LUGGAGE. UNFORTUNATELY, WITH ALL THEIR PARTY, THE HOUSE WILL BE FULL AND I AM UNABLE, AS I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO PROVIDE A DAY ROOM IN GOVERNMENT HOUSE FOR LORD CAITHNESS AND HIS PARTY. INSTEAD, SIR DAVID FORD WILL BE HAPPY TO PROVIDE A BASE AT VICTORIA HOUSE. GRATEFUL IF YOU COULD LET ME KNOW WHETHER LORD CAITHNESS WOULD

LIKE TO ACCEPT.

2. A PROPOSED DRAFT PROGRAMME IS MIFT. IT WOULD BE HELPFUL IF LORD CAITHNESS COULD ARRIVE FROM SHENZHEN SUFFICIENTLY EARLY FOR US TO HELICOPTER HIM FROM THE BORDER TO MEET ME BEFORE LUNCH, AT LEAST BRIEFLY. THIS WOULD MEAN CROSSING THE BORDER AT MAN KAM TO BY 1145. THERE WILL BE A LEGCO SESSION THAT AFTERNOON, SO A SEPARATE MEETING WITH OMELCO WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE.

3. FOR THE AFTERNOON PROGRAMME, I SUGGEST RETAINING SOME OF THE ELEMENTS PROPOSED IN MY TELNO 3047, NAMELY A VISIT TO THE GREEN ISLAND RECEPTION CENTRE AND TO GO FROM THERE BY LAUNCH TO STONECUTTERS ISLAND TO SEE WHERE THE NAVAL BASE WILL BE.

4. THIS WOULD LEAVE TIME FOR A MEETING WITH SELECTED JOURNALISTS

IN THE LATE AFTERNOON AND A SHORT BREAK BEFORE DINNER. I SUGGEST THAT, WEATHER PERMITTING, DINNER SHOULD BE AN INFORMAL ONE ON THE LADY MAURINE. THE DUKE OF KENT WILL BE ATTENDING A DINNER WITH THE ENGINEERING COUNCIL THAT EVENING, BUT THE DUCHESS WILL BE INVITED TO JOINT US ON TLM.

5.

GRATEFUL FOR ANY COMMENTS ON THESE PROPOSALS.

WILSON