Simonstown Agreement (Hansard, 14 January 1975)

§ 14. Mr. Grylls
asked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement 176 on his progress with regard to the ending of the Simonstown Agreement.

§ Mr. Mason
The conduct of the negotiations is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary, but, as he reaffirmed when he saw the South African Prime Minister on 4th January, Her Majesty's Government's aim is to terminate the agreement as soon as possible.

§ Mr. Grylls
Will the Minister bear in mind Soviet naval activity in the Indian Ocean and the possible danger to oil supplies to the whole of Western Europe which that activity could bring about? Will he consult our NATO allies with a view to seeing whether there is any possibility of a NATO solution to defence in the area of the Indian Ocean which would help this country and which would help to solve the problem?

§ Mr. Mason
I am aware of the first point raised by the hon. Gentleman. On his second point, I believe that the NATO Defence Planning Council is worried about the growth of Soviet naval activity around the Cape and the Indian Ocean and that it will probably be embarking upon the study that he suggests.

§ Mr. Frank Allaun
Will my right hon. Friend deny that NATO has its eyes on Simonstown and that the study to which he refers has already started contrary to NATO's charter, which precludes it from going further south than a specified limit?

§ Mr. Mason
I am not aware of the detail to which my hon. Friend refers regarding the study. He suggested that NATO has its eyes on Simonstown. That means nothing. Any fleet of any nation can now use Simonstown, and fleets use it. The French and the Iranians as well as the British call in when they are moving round the Cape. Rest and recreational facilities are good, and it is too good a port visit for many of the fleets to miss. Even if we renegotiate the Simonstown Agreement it is still our intention to use it as other fleets of the world use it—namely, on a customer basis.

§ Mr. Brotherton
Leaving aside ideological considerations, does not the right hon. Gentleman agree that the Simonstown Agreement is of immense importance to Britain's defence?

§ Mr. Mason
The hon. Gentleman has not been taking notice of developments in recent times. Simonstown is of lessening importance to the defence of this country. The use of Simonstown can help fleets of the world in replenishment and in training exercises when going round the Cape and, as far as we are concerned, in going on exercises with CENTO and SEATO. It also serves a useful purpose for protecting the trade routes around the Cape. Because of our gradual withdrawal from the East, however, it is of lessening importance to us.