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A central theme of the 2000 Group's discussions this time will be Asia and Japan's role within Asia. I was most interested in your call in Bangkok for increased political and security cooperation between Japan and ASEAN. We and our EC partners share your interest in promoting stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region. A positive response to ASEAN's proposals for political and security dialogue would be a good contribution to this process. We value the insight that Japan can provide on Asian affairs. The 2000 Group is an important link in the network of exchanges that we enjoy on these issues.
On Hong Kong, I am grateful for Japan's support and help. This has been a difficult time in our relations with China, but we continue to hope that we can resolve our differences through discussion. The Chinese recently agreed to the principle of talks and we are pursuing the detailed arrangements. I am grateful that you and your colleagues have been willing to stress privately to China the importance to the Asia-Pacific region of Hong Kong's continuing stability and prosperity. I hope you will continue to put across the concern of all China's partners in the region that business confidence should not be undermined and that the confidence of the Hong Kong people in the "one country, two systems" policy should not be shaken.
My meeting last week with President Clinton covered a number of important topics, including GATT and other trade issues. We agreed on the need for an early, successful outcome to the Uruguay Round. I welcomed the new US administrations' commitment to seeking fast track extension for the GATT negotiations and urged that this should be for a relatively short period, allowing time to complete outstanding work while keeping up the pressure on the negotiators. President Clinton was receptive to this argument. We both recognised that there would be hard decisions, but the boost to world trade from
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