§ (For release at 1200 hours, 7th June, 1966)
§ On 6th June, 1966, the British Minister of Defence, Mr. Denis W. Healey, and the Federal Minister of Defence, Kai-Uwe von Hassel, met in Bonn for a discussion of questions of mutual interest within the scope of their regular meetings.
§ Among those attending the talks were, on the British side, the British Ambassador, Sir Frank Roberts, the Deputy Under Secretary in the British Ministry of Defence, Mr. G. Leitch, the Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff, Rear Admiral O. Steiner, and the 566 Assistant Under Secretary (Material), Mr. G. C. B. Dodds; on the German side State Secretary Karl Gumbel, the Federal Armed Forces Deputy Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Gustav-Adolf Kuntzen, and Dr. Werner Knieper, the Chief of the Military Materiel Department.
§ After a private talk in the morning during which the Ministers exchanged views on current problems of NATO, the delegations met in plenary session during the afternoon.
§ The British Minister of Defence described the serious foreign exchange problems caused by maintaining the present strength of the British Forces in Germany at full fighting efficiency. Minister von Hassel, for his part, explained the German problems which made it difficult to achieve a full offset of foreign exchange costs. Against this background a wide field of projects was discussed. Agreement was reached on the following measures:—
- (a) The Federal Government intends to introduce the British "Seacat" Ship-to-Air missiles into the Federal German Navy and is also prepared to participate in a joint development of a follow-on system for the "Seacat" missile.
- (b) As a result of the German trials of the "Stalwart" load carrier which started in November, 1965, the British manufacturer is making a few modifications to the vehicle. Assuming satisfactory results from a further trial, the Federal German Government intends to procure a certain number of this vehicle for the Federal German Army.
- (c) The Federal German Government will send a team this month to Britain to discuss the purchase of heavy radar equipment.
§ Other questions raised concerned the location of British and German troops, the deployment of the Royal Air Force and the joint use of training areas in the Federal Republic. The Ministers agreed to examine these questions immediately.
§ On 7th June, Minister Healey and Minister von Hassel will visit a surface-air-missile battalion of the Federal Armed Forces and the Combat Troop School II at Munsterlager.
§ The Federal Minister of Defence will take leave of his visitors in Gütersloh at approximately 6.0 p.m. From there Minister Healey will go to visit the British Army in the Bielefeld area and the R.A.F. at GUtersloh and return to London the following evening by air.