§ 49. Mr. Warbeyasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what forms of action are contemplated by Her Majesty's Government in fulfilment of the obligations of Article IV of the South-East Asia Collective Defence Treaty.
§ The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Anthony Nutting)The nature of the action to be taken by Her Majesty's Government would entirely depend on the circumstances in which Article 4 of the Treaty was invoked and on the general situation prevailing at The time.
§ Mr. WarbeyDoes this reply mean that the Government reserve to themselves a completely free hand to decide 29 what action to take in the event of a situation arising, or do the Government regard this Article as imposing a binding obligation on this country to send military forces to deal with a situation arising under the Article?
§ Mr. NuttingThe reply means exactly what it says.
§ 50. Mr. Warbeyasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs which countries, other than those which attended the Manila Conference, have been invited to adhere to the South-East Asia Collective Defence Treaty.
§ Mr. NuttingNone, Sir.
§ Mr. WarbeyWhat would be the value of this Treaty in not including such important Asian members of the Commonwealth as India and Ceylon and countries like Burma and Indonesia?
§ Mr. NuttingIn the view of Her Majesty's Government, the value of the Treaty is that it is a contribution to peace, stability and security in South-East Asia.