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ANNEX A TO DOP 4/68 (Final
Continued)
Equipment Disposal Policy
25. Early policy decisions are required on what equipment would be backloaded and what may be disposed of locally.
Continued Australian and New Zealand Presence
26. Should ustralia and New Zealand decide to maintain a military presence after United Kingdom support to 28th Commonwealth Brigade, Terendak Garrison and RAAF Butterworth has ceased, and should they request, on a repayment basis, the assistance of certain United Kingdom logistic and specialist personnel during a transitional period, such assistance would be unlikely to have a significant effect on the rundown plan.
Maritime Defence of Malaysia and Singapore
27. CINCFE recommends that there is a requirement for urgent discussion between Commonwealth Governments, similar to those which initiated the Air Defence Working Party, to promote Naval co-operation between Malaysia and Singapore, and to ensure that a joint Organisation controls the Naval Base Waters. (This has now been implemented).
Naval Control of Shipping
28.
The withdrawal of the Far East Fleet would disrupt the Naval Control of Shipping organisations of NATO (east of Suez), SEATO and ANZAM, and the United Kingdom would be unable to fulfil her Far East obligations in this sphere after 1970. CINCFE recommends that our allies should be given early warning of this to enable them to negotiate other arrangements.
United Nations Command Korea
29. CINCFE considers that ur present commitment, which has been informally reduced to providing one ship at Hong Kong, should now be re-negotiated since it has little credibility at present and would have none by 1971.
Hunter FGA Squadron
30. The Hunter FGA Squadron would be due to phase out by 1st April 1970. A decision on the future requirement for fighter support of Hong Kong is required before this date.
Gurkhas
31. 2,000 Gurkhas and their families would be moved from Singapore and Malaysia by December 1971, presumably to Hong Kong. Works services will need to be initiated in good time to provide for their accommodation.
11
OUR VIEWS
General
32. We are in general agreement with the Commander-in-Chief's outline plan and note that its assumptions correspond closely to the guidelines (6) which we have sent him.
Note:
6. COSSEA 28
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