CO537-4999 — Page 101

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KY. 224) JUNE. 1949

LYS HUGHES: (Lab. - Ayrshire, S.)

To ask the Minister of Defence, what was the purpose of his visit to Hong Kong; and what conclusions he has come to as to whether further military activity there is justifiable.

URSTION:

MR. LANGFORD-HOLT: (Con.

Shrewsbury)

To ask the Minister of Defence, whether

he will make a statement on his recent visit to Hong Kong and the Far East.

MR. ALEXANDER

During a short tour in the early part of this

month, when I visited Ceylon and Malaya, and also

took the opportunity of making a general study

of the whole position in the Far East, I

stayed for three days in Hong Kong for

discussions with the authorities, both civil

and military, on the spot.

As I indicated, on behalf of the Government)

when in Hong Kong, our object is to maintain the

friendliest possible relations with whatever

may be the Government of China, at the same

into

time taking account our obligations to

the people of the territory for which we are

responsible. I found that the responsible authorities are facing their problems with

confidence and, in the field of defence, all

practicable steps are being taken to ensure

the safety of Hong Kong.