TNAG-2791-FCO40-4030-Relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-China.-With-maps-1993 — Page 125

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of these two countries of such different histories and political

cultures to cooperate for thirteen years about delicate and

uncertain matters as if oblivious to the record of volatility of

the Chinese Communist regime and to the possibilities of radical

change in the external environment.

It should also be noted that these negotiations are

exclusively a British concern. Unlike the conduct of the bulk of

its foreign relations, these negotiations have not involved the

complexities of multilateral dealings with European or Atlantic

allies, nor have they required the involvement of a broad range

of domestic economic and political interests that have become a

regular feature of Britain's international

Consequently they have not attracted the kind of public debate

and scrutiny (comparatively mild as that may be) that has become

a regular feature of foreign policy. In fact the negotiations

have been conducted until recently in the main by ministers as

advised by a relatively small team of officials drawn from, or

located in, the Foreign and Commonwealth office.

negotiations.

The principal purpose of this article is to identify the

main difficulties in the negotiations that were evident even

before 1992 SO as to better explore the implications of the

dispute that has erupted as a result of the Patten proposals. The

concern here is less with the substance of the negotiations than

with their conduct. In particular three broad issue areas may be

isolated for discussion: (1) Do either, or both, of the two sides

misunderstand or misperceive the purposes or interests of the