CODE 18-77
CONFIJEM Pine
Mr David, HKD Miss Darling, NAD
Mr Roycroft, FED
Mr Clay - /cartureration
Reference...
(2)
BRITISH DETACHMENT TO THE UNITED NATIONS COMMAND (REAR) IN JAPAN: COSTS
Please will you refer to the attached draft submission and letter on this subject, on which Mr Roycroft has invited my comments. Since this question may also be of interest to HKD and NAD, I should be grateful for Mr David's and Miss Darling's comments on the draft, and on my minute below.
2.
I suggest the following changes be made to the submission:
a. It should be made clear that no reply has yet been made to Mr Brown's
letter of 16 July 1976 to Lord Goronwy Roberty, because we have been trying since then to get the Americans to pa full costs of this
detachment.
b. I suggest the last sentence of para 6 be deleted and the following
be substituted:
"We have known throughout that there are no FCO funds for
meeting the costs in this case.
"
3. So far as the draft letter is concerned, I suggest we should make use with the MOD of the fact that under the Hong Kong Defence Costs Agreement, 50% of the costs of the Hong Kong garrison are paid by the Hong Kong Government. Presumably this means that 50% of the costs of the officer currently detached from Hong Kong to the UNC are already paid for by the Hong Kong Government and any attempt by us to recoup his full costs from the Americans constitutes profiteering. If we can persuade the MOD of this argument, we might get them to agree that we should go back to the Americans for a claim for 50% of the officer's pay and allowances instead of full costs.
4.
I therefore propose the following changes to the draft letter:
a. The present para 2 should follow after the first sentence of para 1,
and the remainder of para 1 should become a new para 2.
b. Para 3: delete and insert:
"For the first, the FCO have no funds with which to meet the costs
in this case as you suggest."
c. Para 5: Add two new sentences as follows:
"As you know, the Americans have recently agreed (England's letter
of 19 January to Miss Bennett) that we may discontinue our contingency plans for a British contribution to an emergency evacuation of the international community in Korea and have taken on our responsibility themselves. The Americans may well feel aggrieved if we were now to threaten to withdraw the help we have proffered in respect of the UNC(Rear)."
CONFIDENTIAL
/a.
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