Far East Defence (Commonwealth Five-Power Conference) (Hansard, 25 June 1969)

HC Deb 25 June 1969 vol 785 cc1471-7 1471

§ 3. Mr. Marten
asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the Commonwealth Five-Power Conference on Far East defence recently concluded in Canberra.

§ 13. Mr. Goodhew
asked the Secretary of State for Defence what decisions were reached at the Commonwealth Five-Power Conference on Far East defence on 19th and 20th June; and if he will make a statement.

1472

§ 51. Mr. Dalyell
asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his official visit to Canberra.

§ 56. Mr. Shinwell
asked the Secretary of State for Defence what subjects were discussed with Australian, New Zealand and other defence Ministers during his tour overseas.

§ 61. Dame Joan Vickers
asked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will make a statement on his recent talks in Canberra concerning the future defence of South-East Asia.

§ The Minister of Defence for Equipment (Mr. John Morris)
I expect that my right hon. Friend will make a statement on his return. Meanwhile, I would refer the hon. and right hon. Members to the official communiqué of the Five-Power Conference, which I shall, with permission, circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

§ Mr. Marten
In the meantime, is it now Government policy that all three Services shall be in the Far East almost continuously, even after our withdrawal, on exercises; and what support as a result of the conference shall we now give to S.E.A.T.O.?

§ Mr. Morris
The position is clear. We shall be exercising troops in the Far East; it will not be continuous, but it will be for a substantial part of the year. We shall be using, in particular, the jungle warfare school, and we shall have a number of ships there from time to time.

§ Mr. Goodhew
Why was the Prime Minister so anxious yesterday to try to differentiate between training in this area and a commitment to be there? Is he suggesting that the troops which are training out there will not be available in any circumstances to come to the aid of our allies?

§ Mr. Morris
My right hon. Friend was making the position quite clear yesterday, as I am sure the hon. Gentleman realises. He was distinguishing between using certain facilities in the Far East to ensure that we could fulfil our training responsibilities, and an automatic commitment.

§ Mr. Dalyell
Before my right hon. Friend makes a statement could we have an account placed in the Library of two 1473 matters—first, precisely what commitments have been made in Canberra, so that we can enter into sensible discussions, and, second, some estimate of the costs needed to meet the proposals of the Leader of the Opposition, who said in Australia that he would maintain a force capable of taking part in resisting the Chinese?

§ Mr. Morris
It is not for me to answer for the Leader of the Opposition, but, on the first part, I would expect my right hon. Friend to make a statement to the House when he returns.

§ Mr. Shinwell
Could my hon. Friend suggest to his right hon. Friend that, in addition to making a statement, he might issue a White Paper? Although the Government appear to have come to a decision to withdraw from east of Suez, the communiqué and the Press reports seem to suggest that we have entered into many commitments which are likely to be costly. Would it not be wise to issue a White Paper to remove the ambiguity?

§ Mr. Morris
On the second part, there is no question of our altering our basic decision to withdraw from Malaysia and Singapore by the end of 1971. I will certainly put the point about the White Paper to my right hon. Friend.

§ Dame Joan Vickers
In view of the fact that we have naval forces there, is the rôle of the Navy, in particular, in the Far East being looked into? Is the training of people from the Far Eastern countries going to be continued in this country?

§ Mr. Morris
The Navy will be deployed from time to time in the Far East. It is expected to amount to up to four ships or so for up to four months a year. This is the measure of the type of Navy training which we expect in the Far East after 1971.

§ Mr. Rippon
In view of the fact that most of the ambiguity to which the right hon. Member for Easington (Mr. Shinwell) referred stems, as usual, from the Prime Minister's observations, may we on this side support the suggestion of a White Paper? We should, for example, like to know why the forces that are to remain there most of the time should not remain there all the time.

1474

§ Mr. Morris
There is no suggestion of any ambiguity in the Prime Minister's statement yesterday. He sought to distinguish between carrying out certain training in the Far East and an automatic commitment. He made the position absolutely clear. I am sure the country will be relieved to know that the Opposition will have no chance of putting into effect their incredibly expensive suggestions.

§ Mr. Moyle
Can my right hon. Friend confirm specifically that the Government's plans for the rundown east of Suez and the timing of the rundown have not been altered at all as a result of these talks?

§ Mr. Morris
Both on the rundown and on the timing, there is no question of altering our basic decision to withdraw from Malaysia and Singapore by the end of 1971.

§ Following is the communique:

1. Delegations from the Governments of Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom met at Canberra on 19th and 20th June, 1969. Their meeting followed from the agreement reached at Kuala Lumpur in June, 1968, that there should be further consultations at ministerial level among the five nations on questions arising from British military withdrawal from Malaysia and Singapore and on the larger questions of their continuing interest in the peace and stability of the area. Ministers attending the meeting at Canberra were: for Australia, the Honourable Gordon Freeth and the Honourable Allen Fairhall; for Malaysia, the Honourable Tun Abdul Razak; for New Zealand, the Right Honourable Keith Holyoake and the Honourable David Thomson; for Singapore, the Honourable Lee Kuan Yew and the Honourable E. W. Barker; and for the United Kingdom, the Right Honourable D. W. Healey.
2. The meeting was opened with an address by the Prime Minister of Australia, the Right Honourable John Gorton. The meeting elected the Honourable Gordon Freeth, M.P., Minister for External Affairs of Australia, as Chairman. The leader of each delegation then made a general statement on behalf of his Government.
3. The five nations affirmed their continuing interest in the peace and stability of the area and their joint concern with practical questions arising from the withdrawal of British Forces from Malaysia and Singapore. In accordance with their desire jointly and separately to promote stability, peaceful development and regional co-operation in South East Asia, they reaffirmed the need to live in harmony with the other countries of the region. Noting their common concern for the maintenance, within this wider context, of the security of Malaysia and Singapore, the five nations expressed their intention to continue the practice of close consultation among 1475 them about the situation in the area and about developments affecting the security of Malaysia and Singapore. The Conference reaffirmed that the principle, declared at the Kuala Lumpur meeting by the representatives of Malaysia and Singapore, that the defence of the two countries was indivisable, constituted an essential basis for future defence co-operation.
4. Recalling that the representatives of Malaysia and Singapore had affirmed at Kuala Lumpur their resolve to do their utmost for their own defence, the Conference welcomed the substantial progress made by the two Governments in developing their own defence capability and the assistance in training and equipment provided to them by Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
5. The representatives of Malaysia, Singapore, and the United Kingdom welcomed the announcements that had been made by the Governments of Australia and New Zealand with respect to the continued stationing of elements of their Armed Forces in Malaysia and Singapore after the British withdrawal in 1971. The representatives of Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand also welcomed the reaffirmation by the representative of the United Kingdom Government of its intention to continue exercising and training in the area. The Conference saw these steps as a practical expression of the desire of the countries concerned to assist Malaysia and Singapore in developing their own effective defence capability and as a contribution to the security and stability of the area.
6. The Conference went on to discuss practical defence problems arising from the British run-down, the progress so far made and the further steps necessary to meet the situation after 1971. In this connection the Conference considered and noted with approval the work of the Navy, Army and Air Force Advisory Working Groups on the questions referred to them by the previous Conference.
7. Dealing first with the major combined exercise to be held in 1970, the Conference expressed satisfaction with the arrangements proposed for this exercise, accepted the detailed proposals which had come forward, and noted that substantial forces would be contributed by all five countries and that a five-power exercise planning staff was continuing work in Kuala Lumpur. The Conference noted that the exercise would, among other things, demonstrate the capability of the United Kingdom rapidly to deploy forces to the area.
8. It was noted that joint exercises were to continue into the period beyond 1971 and it was agreed that a schedule of such exercises should be developed for consideration. These exercises would enable the techniques of co-operation and of support of local forces to be practised.
9. The Conference approved the outline organisation and related proposals developed by the Army Advisory Working Group to establish a Commonwealth Jungle Warfare Centre. It was agreed that the Group should be reconvened to develop its proposals further.
10. Turning to Naval matters, the Conference noted the arrangements made by the Singapore Government in regard to certain of the former Royal Navy facilities, which would ensure the continuing availability of dockyard and other maintenance support. The Conference welcomed the readiness of Malaysia to maintain and operate the Armament Depot on Singapore Island for the use of the partner countries requiring such facilities and the plan whereby the Malaysian Navy would train Singapore naval personnel, which was a demonstration of the close co-operation between the two countries.
11. The Conference also welcomed the advice of the Singapore Government that the existing Royal Navy facilities in the stores basin area could be made available to meet requirements for the continuing presence of the Australian and New Zealand Navies. It was agreed that the Naval Advisory Working Group should be reconvened to continue the study of the transfer of Royal Navy sea and shore training facilities and of other Naval facilities that would be required in the Singapore area.
12. In the discussion of Air Defence matters arising from the report of the Air Force Advisory Working Group, the Conference noted with satisfaction the constructive developments which had occurred since the last Ministerial Meeting. These included the deployment of a second squadron of Australian supersonic Mirage fighters to Butterworth, with arrangements for the rotation of an element at the Tengah Air Base in Singapore and the availability of Australian aircraft after 1971 for assignment as might be appropriate to the proposed integrated Air Defence system: the arrangements made between Singapore and the United Kingdom for the acquisition by Singapore of Bloodhound Missiles: the development of the Singapore Air Force: the impending transfer of a number of Australian Sabre jet fighters to the Royal Malaysian Air Force: the arrangements made by Malaysia and Singapore for the provision and manning in good time of the radar facilities appropriate to the integrated Air Defence system: and the contributions being made by the United Kingdom and Australia in the training of Malaysian and Singaporean personnel. The Conference welcomed the information conveyed to the meeting by the Malaysian Delegation that the Malaysian Government had entered into a contract for the supply of radar equipment, of which one set will be positioned at Butterworth and will be operational in September, 1971, when the British Government closes Western Hill.
13. The Conference agreed that the integrated system for the air defence of Malaysia and Singapore which was accepted at the Kuala Lumpur Conference should be further developed. Consultations would continue regarding detailed arrangements that might govern contributions to the establishment of the system and the arrangements for its control. The Conference welcomed the positive response by Australia to the proposal of the Air Defence Advisory Working Group that, when the form of the Air Defence system had been finally settled, Australia should provide the first Air Defence Commander.
14. The Ministers considered that there had been a valuable review at the Conference of the significant developments and the extensive and detailed work done since the last Ministerial Meeting. They believed that the Conference had consolidated the progress made at Kuala Lumpur. They agreed that there was a real need to translate the important decisions in principle which the Conference had taken into practical working arrangements. It was noted in the context of the continuing work of the Advisory Working Groups that a number of the issues requiring further study could best be considered in a joint services forum. The Conference therefore agreed to set up a Joint Service Advisory Working Group to consider various problems affecting more than one service.
15. The Conference agreed that there should be close consultation at various levels to carry forward the momentum of defence co-operation: and that the form of these consultations should be left to the Governments concerned to arrange as circumstances might require. The Ministers agreed that they themselves would meet again after the major Commonwealth exercise planned for the middle of 1970.