TNAG-0308-FCO40-344-Contributions-of-Hong-Kong-for-costs-of-maintaining-military-1971 — Page 132

Zbe argued that we should do so by

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security) must be one of the first priorities of any government, above social and economic development expenditure. Britain has her own difficulties in apportioning public expenditure over the next few years, and many socially desirable schemes in the UK have had to be sacrificed. If Britain has to subsidise Hong Kong, it could/direct subsidy to the development programme, rather than by bearing a concealed subsidy on the British Defence Vote.

7. I do not have the text of what the Prime Minister said in Hong Kong in January 1970 when he was Leader of the Opposition. It appears from the context, however, that he must have been referring to the British military presence in Malaysia/Singapore and not to Hong Kong. The decision to continue a modest British military pre- sence in Malaysia/Singapore after 1971 does not seem to me very relevant to the arguement over the Hong Kong defence contribution. Although Britain may have sub- stantial investments in Malaysia/Singapore we are not intending to shoulder the sole burden of the external defence of those countries, but merely to provide com- plementary assistance, within our resources, to the efforts of Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand inside a Five Power consultative defence framework. The British Army contribution to the Five Power Defence Arrangements is to be only one battalion (c.f. 53 battalions in Hong Kong). We shall have no responsibilities of the internal security of Malaysia and Singapore under the Five Power Defence Arrangements. Moreover the presence of substantial British investments in a region does not necessarily entail a British military presence. We shall in fact be withdrawing our permanent garrisons from the Gulf at the end of the year despite our substantial investments there.

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8 March, 1971

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(J Thomas) Defence Department

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онасо

Returned to

Mr Thomas

22.3.71.

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