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ANNEX A to DP 9/68(C) (Directors' Draft) (Continued)
Tai Mo Shan. A fighter presence is provided periodically by a
training detachment of Hunter aircraft from Singapore.
In an
emergency, reinforcements can be provided from the Far East Air
Force and from outside the theatre.
IMPLICATIONS OF WITHDRAWAL FROM
MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE
Chinese Reaction
16.
The situation nearly four years hence will inevitably be
affected by any outcome of the Vietnamese war, However, the
external threat to Hong Kong is likely to remain unchanged so
long as United States forces remain in the Far East and the
uncertainty of American reaction to any Chinese aggression still
exists. China will be aware that reinforcements for the Hong Kong
Garrison will have to come from the European theatre after the
closure of our main base at Singapore, and consequently, may
exploit the psychological effect on the inhabitants of the colony
When of the comparative isolation of British Forces. Also, (so long as)
all Gurkha forces are concentrated in the colony, there is the
opportunity for China to bring pressure to bear on Nepal, which
might reduce the usefulness of the Gurkhas.
Hong Kong Reaction
17. The completion of withdrawal of forces from Malaysia and
Singapore will be apparent to the population of Hong Kong.
Their morale will be particularly sensitive to the knowledge
that there will be no reserves of British forces available in
the theatre and that reinforcements will then have to come from
Europe. In these circumstances much will depend on buoying
up the expectations of both Europeans and Asians and avoiding a
crisis of confidence. Any reduction in the strength of our
forces in Hong Kong at that stage could well affect the confidence
of police and public by casting doubt on HM Government's
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