TNAG-0546-FCO40-641-Strength-of-garrison-in-Hong-Kong-1975 — Page 55

CONFIDENTIAL

HONG KONG DEFENCE COSTS AGREEMENT PRESS STATEMENT

1. The Minister of State for Defence, the Rt Hon

William Rodgers MP today announced in Parliament a new Defence

Costs Agreement with the Government of Hong Kong. This will

succeed the present 5-year Agreement which expires on

31 March :976. Mr Rodgers has recently conducted negotiations

in both Hong Kong and London, with representatives of the

Hong Kong Covernment led by the Governor, Sir Murray MacLehose,

and the new Agreement was signed yesterday.

2. The new Agreement reaffirms HMG's commitment to the

security and integrity of Hong Kong and stipulates the

size of the agreed garrison, which will be smaller than in

the past but which will be reinforced should circumstances

so require. The garrison will in future include four

Infantry Battalions (three of them Gurkha), a Gurkha

Engineering Squadron, five naval patrol craft and an RAF

helicopter squadron. At current prices the cost will be

£421M a year, which is some £20M less than the present

garrison. The Hong Kong Government will meet 50% of the

cost of the garrison in the first year of the new Agreement

(1976/77), 621% in the second year and 75% in the third

and succeeding years, compared with a contribution in the

current financial year of about £11M under the present

Agreement.. The new Agreement will run for seven years

initially and will be renewed for further periods of five

years on the same terms unless either Government wishes to

vary them.

CONFLAMANTIL RELEASED

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