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177002
MDLIAN 5381
TALKS UNDER NO PRE-CONDITIONS.
13. THE ORIENTAL DAILY NEWS (18.2) UNDERSTOOD THE TWO SIDES HAD DECIDED TO RESUME TALKS IN PRINCIPLE AND WERE WORKING OUT THE DETAILS AND IT WAS BELIEVED ANNOUNCEMENT WOULD BE MADE SOON. THE ECONOMIC TIMES NOTED THE BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO PEKING, WOULD BE THE LEADER FOR THE BRITISH DELEGATION AND THAT NEITHER THE GOVERNOR NOR HKG OFFICIALS WOULD BE EXPECTED TO BE INCLUDED BECAUSE CHINA WAS AGAINST THE 'THREE LEGGED STOOL' SITUATION. REPORTS NOTED (19.2) THE GOVERNOR DISMISSED SPECULATION THAT HK WOULD BE EXCLUDED FROM TALKS. THE INFORMATION CO-ORDINATOR, MIKE HANSON, SAID THE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT IN A POSITION TO MAKE A STATEMENT BUT IF THERE WERE TO BE TALKS, HK WOULD BE FULLY INVOLVED AT EVERY STAGE AND THIS MEANT DIRECT PARTICIPATION. SPOKESMAN IN HK, CHRIS OSBORNE WAS QUOTED AS SAYING HKG OFFICIALS HAD TAKEN PART IN JLG MEETINGS AS PART OF THE BRITISH TEAM AND HE CONSIDERED HK WOULD NOT BE EXCLUDED FROM THE TALKS. THE SCMP SAID (19.2) IT WAS UNDERSTOOD THOSE LEADING THE BRITISH TEAM WOULD BE THE AMBASSADOR IN PEKING SIR ROBIN MCLAREN AND THE SECRETARY FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS MICHAEL SZE AND THE POLITICAL ADVISER WILLIAM EHRMAN WOULD ALSO BE INCLUDED. THE CHINESE TEAM WAS EXPECTED TO BE HEADED BY THE VICE FOREIGN MINISTER JIANG ENZHU AND WOULD INCLUDE WANG FENG CHAO OF THE
HKMAO.
·
FCO
14 A REUTER REPORT SAID (19.2) BOTH SIDES HAD AGREED TO RESUME DISCUSSIONS IN PEKING. IT QUOTED CHINESE SOURCES AS INDICATING THE CHINESE VICE FOREIGN MINISTER TIAN ZENGPEI WOULD DISCUSS DETAILS OF THE 1995 ELECTIONS WITH THE BRITISH AMBASSADOR IN PEKING WHICH WOULD THEN BE SUBMITTED TO THE BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY AND THE CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTER FOR DISCUSSIONS. THE REPORT ALSO UNDERSTOOD MR TIAN WAS HOWEVER, NOT IN CHARGE OF HK AFFAIRS AND THAT VICE FOREIGN MINISTER JIANG ENZHU HAD TAKEN OVER.
PATTEN
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