P.M. Says N.Z. May Raise Commitment

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31881, 8 January 1969, Page 1

P.M. Says N.Z. May Raise Commitment

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) LONDON, January 7. The Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) has said in London that New Zealand may increase its military commitment in the , Malaysia-Singapore area at the end of the Vietnam war.

On the eve of the Commonwealth conference, Mr Holyoake said that an end to fighting in Vietnam would allow New Zealand to concentrate to a greater extent her limited military capacity in the MalaysiaSingapore area. Mr Holyoake said he regretted Britain's decision to withdraw from east-of-Suez bases, but added that Britain had given every assurance it would maintain the .military capacity to assist in an emergency. Britain plans to withdraw all its troops from the area by 1971, but says reinforcements could be flown to the Far East if required. New Zealand has one battalion at Terendak, near Malacca, and an air transport squadron based in Singapore. A.NXUJS. Treaty The Associated Press said Mr Holyoake was asked about an American congressional report about the Australian, New Zealand and United States Defence Treaty (A.N.Z.U.S.). He agreed with the report’s conclusion that the two countries depended more on the United States than on the South-East Asia Treaty Organisation for their defence. Asked if he saw any threat to A.N.Z.U.S. in the report, Mr Holyoake said he had not

read it but he hoped there was no great significance to it The Press Association reports from Wellington that the Government has received no official information on the United States House of Representatives subcommittee report on the A.N.Z.U.S. Pact. The report, released in Washington yesterday, recommended that the pact should be kept under continui ous review to ensure that ; contingencies which might arise under it were adequately provided for under other multilateral defence ar- . rangements. The pact, which binds the United States. Australia and

: New Zealand to come to each i other’s defence in the case of overt aggression, is regarded by the New Zealand Govern- . ment as the corner-stone of t its defence policy. I The Minister handling Gov- , eminent business in Wel- ; lington during the four-week . Cabinet holiday, the Minister of Broadcasting (Mr Adams- ' Schneider) said that the . only information received by t the External Affairs Depart- . ment on the committee’s rej port was that contained in t the newspapers. “My only conclusion is if r the matter was of major importance we would have been informed by now by our Em- ! bassy in Washington—and we I haven’t been,” he said.