5
69.0.
Judian troops wiHK.
2.5.28
This letter from the India Office has
been delayed as the file has been circulating
almost continuously with the file about the
general military forces in China, the
consideration of which was more urgent and
which I did not wish to complicate by
circulating this letter at the same time.
I think the Government of India have
slightly misunderstood the Governor's point
in saying that the Government of India is
reluctant to allow Indian troops to be employed
him to mean was in China; what I understood
that Indian troops could not be used for
general service in China except under special
circumstances and with the permission of the
Government of India, and since the forces in
Hong Kong are, therefore, for a two fold
purpose, both to protect the Colony and to
serve as a reserve for China generally this
detracted from their usefullness and made it
desirable that all the forces in Hong Kong should
be British. As the Governor points out if
Indian troops are not to be employed in China
generally and Hong Kong insists on having at
least one British battalion in the Colony the
effective force available in Hong Kong for may be reduced to
Chinese service i-only two battalions instead
of three.
might
I think we explain this to the
India Office and send a copy of the correspondence
to the Governor LF.
s Cami
24 5.28.