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member states under the Madrid Declaration of June 1989, only two remain
in force: a ban on arms sales and high level military contacts; and a
ban on contacts at the level of Head of State. A visit by Jiang would breach the second of these. The Germans gave no advance warning of this to EC partners. Indeed, at the Chevening meeting on 18 October, the German representative twice stressed the need for Western solidarity in dealing with China. Our Embassy in Bonn, who have made a low-key enquiry, report that the German Foreign Ministry were as unsighted about the invitation as we were. It seems to have been decided by the
President and the Chancellor without wider consultation.
B
4. This matter has two aspects: the breach of an agreed EPC position and the implications for UK interests, particularly in relation to Hong Kong. The Governor of Hong Kong has commented that Chancellor Kohl's initiative damages our Hong Kong interests because it will have confirmed to the Chinese that, whatever happens in the negotiations, we
are not going to get much support from our EC partners. We do not know whether and how Chancellor Kohl raised Hong Kong with the Chinese leaders during his visit, but Germany's past record of support for Hong Kong is not very impressive.
5. The Governor intends to raise these matters himself when Chancellor
Kohl visits Hong Kong on 20 November. He suggests that the Secretary of
State might pursue the subject at the Anglo-German Summit and that Sir J Coles telephone his German opposite number beforehand. There would
however be an earlier opportunity for the Secretary of State to raise the matter, when he and Mr Kinkel are in Luxembourg on Monday 22 November. I attach a suggested speaking-note.
fed13/EC.CHINA/kohl.poco.1811
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