TNAG-2717-FCO40-3923-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1993 — Page 33

for the Chief of the General Staff, it may have been for the CDS himself, and I sat next to a very senior ranking military man, although of course he did not show his rank. He said to me, during the course of dinner, 'Nothing has done more good to your country in terms of our respect for it than the success of your commanders in the South Atlantic a couple of years ago. It has made an amazing difference politically'.

Thank you Mr Chairman.

Opening Statement by Sir Alan Donald

As the junior of the three ex-Ambassadors I think they have said quite a lot, but I would like just to make one general point. Since I retired I have taken up a number of jobs with British companies, and I am on the Board of several companies. I just wanted to make it quite clear that anything I say today will be entirely my views and will not reflect in any way the companies, because being responsible companies they would not wish to criticise or comment on official Government policy.

Chairman: Right, we quite understand that. There are a number of points that Sir Richard said we would like to pursue, but first can we start from the general question we were on with Sir Percy? Perhaps Mr Rowlands would like to carry on?

Evidence given by Sir Alan Donald

Mr Edward Rowlands: I would like to follow on from the last remarks that Sir Percy made. You have in a sense started to answer them. Can I ask you about the political stability of China if in fact you get economic change? We have seen in what was the great Soviet Union empire that once the cementing force of the Communist Party started to dissolve what emerged was a great deal of factionism, and of breaking up into various provinces and the rest of it. Is there any potential for this in inner China? Is the Communist Party in China the cementing force or are the Chinese themselves? Is there a potential for a break-up in China of the kind we have seen in what was the Soviet Union if political change starts to occur?

Sir Alan Donald: I do not know a very great deal about

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