TNAG-0254-FCO40-290-Contributions-of-Hong-Kong-for-costs-of-maintaining-military-1971 — Page 87

NOTHING TO BE WRITTEN IN THIS MARGIN

W(B)L 51-7406

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equivalent of two (or more) major Army units.

These are the Governor's very tentative

and personal proposals. He emphasizes that

they are based on a garrison at the level of

by no means

73 major units and that he is not at all

sure that he can get such a large increase

(60% on the present contribution by his

calculations) accepted locally. He est for

Wiess on Thin

It seems to me that this is very muok Our mattor in which we shall have to rely on th

that thin in the woman the could hope to secure and That

feeling here in that the Governor is certainly right in his

Governor's judgment

judgment./ He will have the

teek of persuading his Executive

difficulty took

This figure:

Council and the Finance Committee of the

Legislative Council to agree to the årrenge-

ments end, if a higher contribution is

claimed, we shall in all likelihood become

involved in the kind of unpleasant wrangle

over details that we encountered when the

present contribution was negotiated in 1966.

I am at your service if you would like

to computer the position to have a meeting but, if the size of the

garrison is one of the matters which is

dependent on the review of the situation in

the Far East generally which I understand

that your Secretary of State will be

submitting to his colleagues, it may be more

useful to defer discussion you will have

noted that the Governor has based his estimate

of what he might negotiate, on the supposition

that the garrison would be at the level of

73 major units and, as your letter of 18 May

recognised, the size of the garrison was one

of the factors which it was accepted he could

take into account in arriving at a figure.

I am sending copies of this letter to Gedling and Stretton.

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