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Paragraph (11)
The Kuwait commitment represented an insurance premium which we paid on
account of our oil interests there and of the importance to us of Kuwait's sterling balances; its continuance depended both on the desire of the Government of Kuwait for our support and on their not taking action against
our major interests.
Paragraph (13)
Before the Cabinet considered the defence expenditure studies, proposals
to reduce planned expenditure on defence research and development by
£30 million annually should be discussed by the Defence Secretary with the
Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Minister of Technology in the light of
the full study that had been presented to the Defence Review Working Party
by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Technology.
Paragraph (16)
Decisions were required now to proceed with new classes of cruiser,
destroyer and frigate and that no further orders should be placed for the Harrier (P 1127) and Phantom aircraft. Separate submissions would be nade
to the Committee on the development of Aldabra as an airfield and also on
the Anglo-French variable geometry aircraft in the light of a meeting which
would take place later that week between the Defence Secretary and M. Messmer,
the French Minister for the Armed Forces; if, as seemed likely, France had decided for financial reasons not to proceed with this project very
important issues would arise for the future of our military aircraft
industry. It might be necessary for the Committee to consider some of
these issues in more detail at their subsequent meeting.
Paragraph (17)
When the possibility of deploying our Polaris submarines East of Suez
was considered in October, this should be in the context of a general review
of our Polaris programme and of expenditure on nuclear weapons research and
development.
THE PRIME MINISTER, summing up the discussion, said that on balance
the Committee took the view that the rate and level of saving and the rate
of withdrawal from our oversea commitments which were envisaged in the report
represented the basis on which we should plan our future defence policy
overseas, though it would be open to individual Ministers in further
discussion in Cabinet to maintain a contrary view. The Committee should
resume their discussion at their next meeting on the basis that they would
then continue their examination of the report by officials from paragraph 18
of the summary onwards, subject to any further points that Ministers might
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