TNAG-2799-FCO40-4039-Hong-Kong-six-monthly-meetings-of-foreign-ministers-1993 — Page 56

VISIT BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE TO PEKING

PUBLIC PRESENTATION

BULL POINTS

Hong Kong Matters

Under the MOU signed by the Prime Minister and

Chinese Premier, agreed that Chinese Foreign Minister and I should meet twice a year. I have said earlier that before arranging the next meeting there would need to be reasonable prospect of it being useful. Chinese Foreign Minister has said

much the same.

1

Governor has been in London take stock of where we

have got to in the talks with China on electoral

issues with PM and other Ministers.

Governor has proposed, and we agree, that enough progress made in Peking talks for it to make sense

for me and Chinese Foreign Minister to meet. Chinese agree.

So I will take advantage of being

in the region to go to Peking briefly, on 8 and 9

July.

I will not be going to negotiate or to tie up

agreement.

Talks not at that stage. But they have

already been going on for seven rounds. We do not

have infinite time. I want to ensure that the

Chinese side are clear about our essential

sospekingpress/BRIEFS/NJH