(DEFENCE AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS SUB-COMMITTEE)
9 December 1975] Mr C A WHITMORE, Air Vice Marshal
J GINGELL and Rear Admiral F W HEARN
say that they could not be reinforced, as we were told, from the United King- dom, but there will not be any on the Island of Cyprus, is that right?——(Mr Whitmore.) That is right, yes. I think I am right in saying that there are prob- ably no armed aircraft stationed on the Island now, but certainly it is our in- tention by April of next year to have removed the fixed-wing armed aircraft that have been there hitherto.
55. And no helicopters will be armed with missiles, will they? It is not our plan to arm any with missiles.
Mr Finsberg
56. On that point, there will be no defence of the airfield?--As the air- field is at the moment that is right, but there are plans to provide an air de- fence if the Island had to be reinforced in certain circumstances, but as it is at the moment the answer is that there would not be any air defence.
57. That would be in the expectation that any enemy would give us enough notice to protect the base ready to allow planes to come in to reinforce?—Yes, that is an assumption which we have to make in nearly all our reinforcement plans. We have to be able to anticipate, we hope intelligently, what the moves of any potential enemy may be and make our reinforcement plans accord- ingly.
Chairman
58. It was very clearly brought out to us, and quite rightly, by commanders that, although they were manning a boundary with the Turks on one side and ourselves on the other, the Turks are our allies in NATO and they are not our enemy. This is what was being said to the troops out there. Would that be with your complete agreement?
-Most certainly, yes. As you say, the Turks are our allies in NATO and this is something we have very much in mind in our relationships with them.
Mr Conlan
59. How do you see the future of RAF Nicosia?- -I think this is one which is tied up with the future of the airfield itself, very obviously. The
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people who are there at the moment in RAF Nicosia are really only doing a type of care and maintenance job, looking after our facilities as best they can. What will happen in the long term to Nicosia airfield will depend very much on whether it is possible to arrive at any kind of political settlement within the Island, and I think we would want to review the position of RAF Nicosia in the light of that.
60. Were the responsibilities of RAF Nicosia arising out of the residual re- sponsibilities for air traffic control and the maintenance of the apron? Even in the event of Nicosia airport re-opening -and there is a great deal of doubt about that surely the British Govern- ment would not want to accept those responsibilities once again, would they?
-I think that this in part is some- thing on which you will want to examine the FCO witnesses when you see them. It will depend probably on the circum- stances of any wider settlement which, as I say, brings Nicosia airfield back into use again. We still have a retained site there, so we plainly have an interest in the place-witness the continuing presence of a small detachment there- but whether or not we wish to continue with the responsibilities which we have had hitherto, as I say, would depend on the chances of a wider settlement which brought the airfield back into use.
61. The principal role at the moment is to supply Unficyp. When that role ends would not the need to retain RAF Nicosia end as well?-I think it might well do. There might be other circum- stances which we could also want to take into account in forming a view about our future attitude towards the continuation of RAF Nicosia, but cer- tainly, as you say, if the role of Unficyp were to come to an end—and there is no sign that this is going to happen in the foreseeable future-then if, at the same time, there were other circum- stances which made it possible for us to end our presence in the shape of RAF Nicosia, this is something which we would consider doing very seriously.
Mr. Finsberg.
62. Could I ask two related questions? When we move out of Malta, apart
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.