§ 39. Mr. Lofthouseasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what advice Her Majesty's Government gave the Government of Montserrat concerning participation in the force that landed on Grenada on 25 October.
§ Mr. WhitneyDetails are available in the memorandum dated 17 February 1984 submitted by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and published by the Committee as Appendix 1 to its report on Grenada—HC 226 of 5 April 1984.
Under the terms of the treaty of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States — OECS — Montserrat, as a dependent territory, is excluded from deliberations on matters relating to defence and external affairs.
The Executive Council of Montserrat asked on 25 October 1983, after the start of the intervention in Grenada, for our approval to send a small contingent of volunteers from the Montserrat defence force to Grenada. My right hon. and learned Friend was unable to approve this request because it was not in accord with our policy at the time, because the status of members of the force operating outside Montserrat would have been very questionable in both local and international law, and because the force is neither properly trained nor equipped for such operations.