TNAG-0055-FCO40-91-Defence-review-1977 — Page 7

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I enclo e a copy of the Defenen Decret. morandum which is to be taken by the CPD on

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10 May. Iould be grateful therefore if you would be ind enough to co-ordinate the views of the D.T.D. and lot ac have them together with the attached paper, by lunch time tomorro!

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With reference to the Defence Planning St.ff paper which I showed you on Thursday 1st, I am told that the reduction of 375 Gurkhas in Hong Kong refers to men in extra-regimental employment ad is not a roduction in the "teeth arma". alteration in the revised draft of interest to you in a suggestion that the C-in-C should consider basing two M.C.M. shis in Hong Kong to reduce

"otretch".

A.. Reed)

8 may, 1967.

Mr. Fairclough (Through Mr. Minnitt)

Mr. Hall વાંઢ

In this Report on the Defence Secretary's recent discussions in Singapore and Kalaysia on our future military presence in the Far East, there are two points which I think are of some interest to us in the D.T.D. namely <<<

we sl crust:

(a) the pleas by the Singapore- Malaysian Governments:

(a) to maintain some form of continuing

military capability in the Far East after complete withdrawal in the mid-1970's;

(b) to avoid any announcement in the immediate

future of our intention to withdraw altogether.

Please see paragraphs 9(c) and 10(d) of the Defence Secretary's memorandum.

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2. From the narrow interests of our dependent territories in the Far East and Pacific, it is desirable that the S. of S. should be asked to give his support to both these pleas. Although we do not anticipate any difficulty in reinforcing these territories from the U.K. for internal security purposes, it is clearly more satisfactory to have some such capability nearer at hand. Also, it would be helpful to maintain confidence in Hong Kong if we can avoid any announcement at this stage of complete withdrawal from Malaysia/Singapore; in the case of Hong Kong there is clearly not the same force in this argument as it was urged by Lee Kuan Yew in respect of Singapore, but it has some force at a time when the military forces in Hong Kong are being reduced and some uncertainty is being felt there about developments in China and their implication for the Colony.

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