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KIND.
THEY ALSO TOOK THE US TO TASK FOR DESCRIBING AS OFFENSIVE WEAPONS MISSILES BUT NOT STRATEGIC BOMBERS.
TRADE
IS
6.
KANTER RAISED US CONCERNS AT THE WORSENING TRADE DEFICIT WHICH HAD AN IMPACT ON THE MFN DEBATE. BUT KANTER DID NOT DEVOTE MUCH TIME TO THIS ISSUE AS MASSEY, ASSISTANT US TRADE REPRESENTATIVE, DUE TO VISIT IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS FOR TALKS ON MARKET ISSUES. KANTER WAS UNABLE TO RESOLVE DIFFERENCES WITHIN CHINA OF THE PROPOSED MOU ON PRISON LA3OUR. HE EMPHASISED THE IMPORTANCE OF AN AGREEMENT BEFORE THE MFN DEBATE ON 3 JUNE. THERE WAS NO AGREEMENT ON EITHER THE FORM OR CONTENT OF ANY SUCH AGREEMENT BUT THE CHINESE CLEARLY UNDERSTOOD ITS BEARING ON THE MFN DEBATE.
HONG KONG
7. KEYSER SAID THAT KANTER HAD NOT RAISED HONG KONG BUT THE
CHINESE HAD. THEY HAD PRODUCED THE STANDARD LINE ON THE MCCONNELL BILL. KANTER HAD SAID THAT THE ADMINISTRATION DID NOT AGREE WITH EVERY ASPECT OF THE BILL, BUT THERE WAS A NEED FOR CHANGES IN US LEGISLATION TO GIVE A LEGAL BASIS FOR DEALINGS WITH THE SAR AFTER 1997. THE US SIDE RECOGNISED THAT IT WAS FOR CHINA AND THE UK TO DEAL WITH HONG KONG AND THE BASIC LAW WAS THE DOCUMENT TO WHICH THE US WERE LOOKING. NONETHELESS THERE WAS A NEED FOR A US MECHANISM.
INTERNATIONAL ISSUES
8.
KANTER TOLD HIS INTERLOCUTORS THAT IT WAS TIME FOR THE US TO
TALK TO CHINA ABOUT THE RECENT CHANGES IN THE WORLD. DURING HIS TALKS WITH LIU, QIAN QICHEN AND XU XIN, HE TOUCHED UPON IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN, KOREA, CAMBODIA AND PRINCIPALLY CENTRAL ASIA. LITTLE OF SIGNIFICANCE SEEMS TO HAVE EMERGED. KEYSER SAID THAT GENERAL XU
XIN AVE AN ALMOST INCOMPREHENSIBLE ACCOUNT OF THE CONCERN CAUSED BY CERTAIN COUNTRIES SUPPORTING SEPARATIST ACTIVITIES IN CENTRAL
ASIA.
HE REFERRED TO TURKEY'S ACTIVITIES IN TURKMENISTAN. KANTER SIMPLY DENIED THAT THERE WAS ANY US INVOLVEMENT IN SUCH ACTIVITIES.
NARCOTICS
9. KANTER SAID THAT THE US WAS KEEN ON GREATER COOPERATION ON
NARCOTICS. THE CHINESE SIDE MADE THEIR USUAL POSITIVE NOISES BUT
AS YET THESE HAVE YET TO TRANSLATE INTO GREATER COOPERATION. THE
''GOLDFISH CASE' (WHERE A CONVICTED CHINESE DRUG SMUGGLER'S
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