SECRET
reasons. the Nepalese Government would welcome an end to the
rundown of the Gurkha Brigade. He has also recommended that, while we should inform the Nepalese as soon as possible about
any decision on the Gurkhas, we should not consult them.
The Hong Kong Garrison
7.
Ministers of the previous government decided in 1968' that
the Hong Kong army garrison should be increased by one Battalion
to 73 major army units at the end of 1971. This increase
stemmed from their decision to withdraw British forces from thùir
stations in Malaysia/Singapore by the end of 1971; thereafter
F
a quick reinforcement of Hong Kong would no longer have been
possible.
8. It is possible that Treasury Ministers may urge at the DOPC meeting that the levels of the Hong Kong garrison (our
largest single commitment outside Europe in the 1970s) should
be re-examined. It is difficult to dissent from this suggestion,
but the Secretary of State may wish to point out that Hong Kong
is faced not merely with an external threat from China but also
with a Chinese-inspired internal security threat of serious
dimonsions.
1.
}
Moreover even if Ministers decide to retain a
ground force element (possibly a battalion) as part of a British
military presence in Malaysia and Singapore after the end of
1971, it is uncertain whether we shall be able to draw on it
for reinforcement of Hong Kong.
! DEFENCE DEPARTMENT
RO JULY 1970