Chapter 21 British "Iron Lady" meets Chinese "steel company"——Deng Xiaoping and Thatcherf (1)

Margaret Thatcher, also known as Mrs Thatcher from news reports.She is a legendary figure in the British society in the second half of the 20th century. She is the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after World War II. She is also the politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for the longest time. She is one of the most influential figures in the international political arena. .Born in a small town in Umptonshire, she studied chemistry at Oxford before switching to law. Elected as a member of the British Parliament in 1959, he became the leader of the British Conservative Party in 1975. After the successful election of the Conservative Party in 1979, he entered Downing Street and became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.Because she was deeply influenced by Churchill, she adhered to "distinctive traditional conservative philosophy and tough economic policy", and insisted on her consistent strong-willed, decisive decision-making, sharp-edged, and authoritarian style, known as the "Iron Lady".The reason why she is well received in the British political arena is also because she has a very strong national consciousness and tries to become the savior of the sinking "Empire on which the sun never sets" by personal power.In the mid-1970s, she was also a vanguard of the Cold War. The Soviet media once called her a "Cold Warrior" and a "defender of the Western system".

The "Iron Lady" sat down at the negotiating table, only to realize that she was "wishful thinking".To her surprise, after dealing with Deng Xiaoping, she discovered that Deng Xiaoping was a resolute and persistent person. The most memorable part of the exchanges between Deng Xiaoping and Mrs. Thatcher was naturally the negotiations on Hong Kong's return to China.When this British "Iron Lady" came to China, she never imagined that she "fell" in front of Deng Xiaoping, whom Mao Zedong hailed as a "steel company", and tasted the helplessness of a loser.

Therefore, at the beginning of this article, please read some excerpts from Margaret Thatcher's memoir "The Years in Downing Street" to see how she recalled and described her contacts with Deng Xiaoping during the Sino-British negotiations ——— "On the morning of September 22, 1982, when I was flying from Tokyo to Beijing, I repeatedly considered a problem, that is, China did not recognize the "Nanjing Treaty" signed by the British and the Qing government on Hong Kong Island in 1842. The preconditions put forward. We also discussed it in advance and decided to base our negotiating position on the basis that Britain has sovereignty over at least part of Hong Kong territory. If China recognizes this, we can establish a foothold here and then cede sovereignty , in exchange for the right to continue to govern Hong Kong. I have discussed it with politicians and business people many times, and I think this is a solution that everyone is satisfied with. But when I sat down at the negotiating table, I realized that it was just us wishful thinking.

"Arrived in Beijing on the morning of September 23, the next day formal talks were held in the Great Hall of the People. I issued a prepared statement setting out the UK's position. I pointed out that since the core of China's concern is Hong Kong's sovereignty If we suddenly announce major changes to the administration of Hong Kong, a large amount of funds will definitely flow out, and the collapse of Hong Kong is inevitable. Therefore, our two countries should put the maintenance of Hong Kong's prosperity and stability in the first place, and for the future If these arrangements can win the trust of the people of Hong Kong, if the British Parliament is satisfied with these arrangements, we will start to consider the issue of sovereignty.

"I thought this pragmatic statement would be very convincing, so I finally tried to persuade the Chinese government to agree to a joint statement that does not involve taking responsibility, declaring that our common goal is to maintain Hong Kong's prosperity, Substantive talks will then be held. "But I soon discovered that all my original estimates were starting to go wrong. "I have long heard that Deng Xiaoping is a man of seeking truth from facts. Once I dealt with him, I also found that he is a very persistent person, and his attitude is very firm. He said that Hong Kong's sovereignty is not on the table at all, and China will formally discuss it later. Announced the decision to take back Hong Kong. This is beyond my expectation.

"The negotiations with Deng Xiaoping were quite difficult. I couldn't even achieve the initial basic goal, but it was not a total failure. After all, I persuaded Deng Xiaoping to issue a short statement, announcing that the two countries are working together to maintain Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. goals to negotiate. On the morning of January 28, 1983, we were informed that China had proposed unilaterally announcing their plans for Hong Kong's future in June.I think if there is no progress in the negotiations, it is better to promote the democratic process in Hong Kong as soon as possible, let the people of Hong Kong decide for themselves, and vote for a system they can accept, etc.However, none of my colleagues were interested in it at the time, and I couldn't do anything about it.However, I was unwilling to let go of this matter, so I wrote a letter to the Chinese government in my personal name in March of that year. The content of the letter made a major concession compared to the previous one.

"Despite this concession, it still failed to shake China's position. The three rounds of talks in the summer did not make any progress. The talks on September 22 and 23 reached an impasse again. The exchange rate of the Hong Kong dollar plummeted. At this point, I have to decide to hand over sovereignty and governance to China, and I have no other choice.” It can be seen from this that Mrs Thatcher's helplessness is beyond words, and her admiration for Deng Xiaoping is also sincere. So what's the story between them?That has to start with Hong Kong. The Hong Kong issue is an issue left over from history.

Hong Kong, including Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, has been Chinese territory since ancient times. In 1840, Britain launched the Opium War and forced the Qing government to sign the "Nanjing Treaty" in 1842, which humiliated the country and ceded Hong Kong Island permanently. In 1856, the British and French allied forces launched the second Opium War. In 1860, the British forced the Qing government to conclude the "Beijing Treaty", ceding the tip of the Kowloon Peninsula permanently. In 1898, the British took advantage of the opportunity of the great powers to divide their spheres of influence in China and forced the Qing government to sign the "Special Articles on the Expansion of Hong Kong's Boundary Site" and forcibly leased a large area of ​​land on the Kowloon Peninsula and more than 200 nearby islands (later collectively referred to as the "New Territories") for a period of 99 years. Year, which expires on June 30, 1997.

Because these three treaties are products of aggressive wars and are invalid under international law, the Chinese people and successive Chinese governments have never recognized these imposed unequal treaties.During the Anti-Japanese War, the Kuomintang government once raised the issue of taking back Hong Kong to Britain. In 1943, China and Britain reached an agreement to reconsider the lease issue of the New Territories after defeating Japan.However, after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, the Kuomintang government was busy fighting the civil war, and the agreement was shelved again.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese government's consistent position was: Hong Kong is China's territory, China does not recognize the three unequal treaties imposed by imperialism, and advocates resolving this issue through negotiations at an appropriate time. Before that, the status quo was temporarily maintained.

By the end of the 1970s, as the lease term of the "New Territories" was approaching, international investors increasingly took a wait-and-see attitude.This wait-and-see attitude is most prominent in real estate investment.Because real estate investment is greatly restricted by the lease period.The approaching lease period has made investors more and more hesitant.This situation not only greatly reduced the fiscal revenue of the British Hong Kong government, but also had a great negative impact on the development of the entire economy of Hong Kong.The British government has made one such estimate: "A rapid collapse of confidence would begin in the early to mid-1980s unless steps were taken to reduce the uncertainty created by the 1997 deadline. "

Therefore, Margaret Thatcher, who became the British Prime Minister and Chief Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1979, was under great pressure on the Hong Kong issue.As 1997 drew closer, the British government continued to send representatives to test China's position and attitude on resolving the Hong Kong issue.Thus, the solution to the Hong Kong issue historically fell on the shoulders of Deng Xiaoping and Mrs Thatcher.