TNAG-2404-FCO40-3491-Hong-Kong-defence-and-public-order-1992 — Page 181

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18. The Chairman explained that the Naval staff had led a study to look

at the possible requirement for an increased RN presence to support the

final stages of the withdrawal in 1997. Clearly there were 2 ends of the

spectrum; benign and non-benign and the Naval study would be incorporated

into a wider study to look at the full range of options, including costs,

with a view to making specific recommendations in the 1993 Review. Capt

Lockyer explained that they had drawn very much on the 1991 Review as the

basis of their study and that now it had been endorsed by ACNS it would be distributed for wider comment. A copy of the Paper's conclusions and

recommendations is at Annex A.

19.

The Chairman thanked Capt Lockyer for the extremely detailed and

useful Paper and said that now ACNS had endorsed it, he looked forward to

it being forwarded to the Central Staffs and to HQ BFHK for their use in

follow-up work.

20. CBF HK considered that there were guaduations of the benign situation. The most benign might take the form of a routine handover

with advance/rear parties and communications established with the PLA.

Decisions would have to be taken nearer the time but CBF HK was grateful

for the paper, which had identified the spectrum of options. ACDS (0)'s

staff and his own could now get together and incorporate it into the HQ

BFHK study, shortly to be undertaken, entitled "the last 12 months"

which would form part of the 1993 Review.

ITEM 3d LEP/LEC UPDATE

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21.

CBF HK stated that there were some 1,600 LEP both Army and Navy

and that they were a very important thread throughout the Garrison. We

needed to keep large numbers of them until the very end.

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There was no