TNAG-0756-FCO40-960-Strength-of-UK-armed-forces-stationed-in-Hong-Kong-1978 — Page 49

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4.

u will also wish to know that because of the delay in amalgamation it will no longer be possible to complete the rundown of the Brigade from 7000 to 6000 by 1 April 1979. On present plans, and by accepting on a temporary basis a level of undermanning in each battalion, we hope to be able to achieve a rundown to approximately 6100 by that date and, assuming that amalgamation took place in April 1979, the remaining 100 should leave the Brigade by the autumn of the same year. This means that we shall remain marginally above the Defence Review target of 6000 by 1 April 1979, but it is felt that to exceed the target by so small a number is unlikely to provoke comment. If, of course, negotiations with the Sultan lead to a Gurkha battalion being retained in Brunei for a number of years, this would have implications for the Brigade of Gurkhas as a whole and would inevitably require changes to our current plans for their deploy- ment. Such changes would need public announcement; but all this must await the outcome of the present HMG/Brunei negotiations.

20 February 1978

Krampoli

J. DROMGOOLE

AUS(GS)

Room 6308 Main Building Ministry of Defence

Whitehal1

SW1A 2HB

01-21806476

CONFIDENTIAL

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