SECRET
THE CHAIRMAN, summing up the discussion, said that the question of the contribution by the Hong Kong Government and our tactics in securing it did not require immediate Ministerial decision and could be left out of
the paper.
The matter should be pursued by the Commonwealth Office in
consultation with the Ministry of Defence and the Treasury.
The paper should say that we expected that the level of contribution from the Hong Kong Government after 1971 would not be lower than at present. The Ministry of Defence should revise the section on costs accordingly, and
should also include the cost of the forces stationed in Hong Kong for
external defence and other United Kingdon defence purposes, together with
a reference to the total cost of the Hong Kong commitment being greater than the budgetary cost of the garrison. The paper should now be revised
with a view to its being circulated by the Defence Secretary to the Ministerial Committee on Hong Kong at the same time as the long-term study of our policy towards Hong Kong. A meeting of the Ministerial Committee was unlikely to be held before the week beginning 6th May. Thereafter the paper on the garrison, together with the long-tern study, would be submitted to the Defence and Oversea Policy Committee.
The Working Party
Invited the Ministry of Defence, in revising their memorandum for submission to the Ministerial Committee on Hong Kong, to take account of the points made in discussion and in the Chairman's summing up.
-4-
SECRET
Page 75Page 76
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.