ONS'ER'S OIP4
16 JUN1967
L I BR
VISIT TO C ANADA U. K.
LONDO, U. K.
PRESS CONFEAENCE TIVEN BY THE PRIME MINISTER,
MR. H. iROLD HOLT AT LOIDON AIRPORT 12TH JUIE 1967.
Q. Mr. Holt, why have you been pressing the
British Government so hard to maintain its presence east
of Suez.
MR. HOLT: ', ell, because I think it is in the interests
of the United Kingdom I think it is in the interests of
the Commonwealth, I tAink it is in the interests of
security and progress in the whole area.
Q. ', ould you be happy and content to have
British troops in Australisabases if it came to that?
P. M. Y. e discussed this some time ago and the basis
then was that if the United Kingdom was not able to maintain
its presence because of the attitude of the countries concerned
in Singapore and Ialaysia then either the would have to
retire to the United Kingom or else come lo bases in
Australia and talks have been proceeding at the Service
level on this contingency. But, in point of fact, of course
the Governments both of alaysia and Singapore warmly
welcome the retention of British forces in the area.
Q. You criticised western European countries
for taking too little interest in the Far East, particularly
Vietnam, and yet you have limited your own commitment to
Vietnam very severely, would you comment on that?
P. M. . ell, when you say " we have limited", I don't
know what you mean quite by that. ® e have doubled our
defence expenditure over the past four years. are now
running on defence expenditure close to five per cent of
the gross national product, that is higher than any
country with the exception of the United States and the
United Kin dom, any western country anyhow. For us it is
not a small thing when we have to develop a vast continent,
cope with a much more rapid population growth rate than
either the United Kingdom or the United States, and we have
to deal with the problems of placing these people in
occupations, in homes with all the facilities which go
with a growing population. It may interest you to know
that Australia withholds a bi-ger percentage of its gross
national nroduct from consumption than any country except
Japan, far higher than the United Kingdom or the United
States, so we don't rely on others to do the job for us.
Q. Do you think a visit to the Far East would open
Mr. : ilson's eyes?
P. M. Vell I would like to see many United
Kingdom and 7estern European leaders go to that area of the
world because I think they would be tremendously impressed
by the potentialities that are developing there. / 2
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It was an eye opener for me to go to Korea for
example and see what 30 million South Koreans were aoing with
one of the highest rates of gross national product in the
world to go to Taiwan where 15 million industrious people
there were also generating one of the highest rates of
gross national product.
But I haven't come here to twist anybody's arm
you know. I'm here to discuss in a sensible way with a
sensible man and his colleagues what is in the oest
interests not only of our respective countries, but of the
Commonwealth as a whole.
Some peoole have said that what they call your
Government's'obsession' with China is rather overdone,
especially the need to keep american troops on the mainland.
Would you comment on that?
Well, what do you mean by our ' obsession with
China'? . e trade cuite vigorously with China. It has
become a very big customer for Australian wheat, wool tons
and matters of that sort.
I myself envisa e that there must be an accommodation
with China and we must, if we can, build bridges of co-operation
with China. I have no obsession with China. i. e're not
troubled about the possioility as it existed strongly of
communist expansion right down through South East Asia,
affecting Indonesia and in effect providing a communist
camp right through that whole area of Asia. Well, this
has been avoided and the issue is currently being fought
out in Vietnam.
C. To leave the Far East, would you comment on the
Middle East situation. You described it earlier as ' a
great deal of huffing and puffing', I believe.
P. M. No, where did you read that or who attributed
that statement to me? I've read a lot about this but I
have not made a puolic statement to that effect.
I'm just wondering where it
I picked it up from the press, from the press
clippings. P. M. Yes, but where was I alleged to have said it?
eQ. I can't remember now.
P. M. No, well nobody seems to know ecause I don't know
of any place where I have said it. But I did myself earlier
take the view that knowing the major powers, or at least in
my own judgment believing hat the major powers on the
information that I had, were not wishing to involve
themselves in that situation, coming to the conclusion that
it would be a relatively limited operation there.
You see, I was contrasting what was happening out
there with what to me are much more fundamental, deener issues
really involving an historic phase in mankind's development
in the Asian area.
Q. If we-tern countries can play a useful part in the
Far East, can Australia play a useful part in the Middle East?
P. M. I don't think we can play a large part in the / 3
Middle Last, but Australia has always been a good supporter
of the United Nations and helpful. in what has been proposed
by the United Nations.
One of the big problems which remains ahead of
us I think is the settlement of the Palestinian Arabs
and if the United Nations in their wisdom decided that there
should be opportunity for resettlement elsewhere for these
refugees, or else adequate compensation to enable them to
settle somewhere of their choosing, then Australia would,
proportionately to its population, as a member of the
United Nations, play a part in this either in settlement
or in the degree of compensation that had to be provided.
C. Could I put a supplementary question to that?
Do you mean that Australia would accept some Palestine Arabs?
P. M. Well Australia, after the last ', orld ar, accepted
quite a number of Chinese refugees who have become integrated
in the community, I don't imagine myself there would be many
Araos who would want to settle in Australia, and what I
have said relates to this being dealt with as an international
problem with the member nations of the United Nations each
being prepared to play their part. If that were done,
Australia would play a proportionate part, either acceptance
of some for settlement or where others wished to settle
elsewhere, making our contribution to whatever compensation
arrangements were desired.
I might add this is not a matter which has been
canvassed in my Cabinet, but I know how we reacted to the
situation we found after the Second ' Iorld ' ar. Australia
has become a permanent home for many people of many countries
there are more than 40 nationalities substantially
represented in Australia at the present time anA we will
play our part, but this would be a part of an international
settlement involving member countries of the United Nations.
Q. Just after the SEATO Conference in " iashirngton
it was reported that there was an emergency meeting of the
Australian Cabinet. WVould you confirm that there was an
emergency meeting of the Australian Cabinet?
P. M. After
Q. At the time of the SATO Conference in i. ashington
in May. That is what was reported here.
P. M. I don't recall any emergency meeting of the
Australian Cabinet.
Q. A special meeting? This is what was reported here
and what I was going on the say
P. M. Every meeting of the Australian Cabinet is a special
meeting in my opinion.
Q. Well, it was reported as an emergency meeting.
This might have been misreporting.
P. M. Well, I think the House was in session at that
time and we found it necessary because of the pressure of
Cabinet business to meet even while the House was sitting
which is not comfortable but is inevitaole in a country which
has as many things to deal with as we find we have to deal
with. / 4
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Can I put it in another way, sir? Would
you confirm or deny that at that time you heard reports
that Britain in advance of any consultations between
Australia and Britain had indicated that she had plans
to withdraw from east of Suez by the beginning of the
1970' s.
P. M. I'm not troubled too much by plans that
people have because we all have plans to meet a variety of
possibilities. W hat is important is decisions not plans,
because plans can project all sorts of answers to various
problems. I've come here to discuss with the Prime
Minister of the United Kingdom the kind of decision that
might come and he has assured me that no final decision
will e taken until we have hbid those talks.
I had a very curly question bowled up to
me in the United States on their Meet the Press' session.
My interrogator opened up by saying " Now that the
United Kingdom has decided to withdraw completely east of
Suez do you expect the United States to fill that vacuum?"
I haA to sa " I must challenge your premises. I've yet
to be told hat the United Kingdom has finally decided on
a withdrawal east of Suez."
In fact, I've been assured that no final
decisions on these matters are -oing to be taken until at
least I and other Commonwealth leaders have had a chance
of discussing these matters with the Prime Minister.
cQ. And you are satisfied with those assurances?
P. M. Well, are you asking me to say that I don't
accept assurances from the 3ritish Prime Minister and his
colleagues.......... Q. Jell, do you have any doubt?
P. M. I accept the assurances.
( Press Secret. ry interjecting " Perhaps
just one last question." Laughter when the Prime Minister
said: " No, I'm enjoying this.")
Q. Could I just ask you on the Common Market
issue what particular points you intend raising with Prime
Minister Wilson?
P. M. yell, we have welcomed the assurance, of
course, that essential Commonwealth interests will be
safeguarded, but the problem we have in my country is that
what might annear to be a comparatively small interest in
the eyes of the United Kingdom or of other Governments can
be an important interest inside Australia itself because
we are a lar-e country, sparsely populated, and there are
some communities which depend for their existence on a
particular production and, as John IcEwen, my Deputy Prime
Minister, said it doesn't help the man who produces dried
fruit very much to be told that Australia is going to he
very well off because it is selling a lot of iron ore.
I think of a settlement like Mildura which
has been irrigated there are a lot of former soldiers
settled there and they produce dried fruit. To us it
is a community with a lot of real people and it's no
good telling us that our essential interests are being
safeguarded if in noint of fact, whole communities of this
sort are to find themselves withuut a reason for existence,
economically and socially and otherwise.
Q. Do you accept that we are now better off as
a result of the Kennedy Round and that we can now absorb the
blow of British entry into the Common Market more easily?
P. M. All I know that came out of the Kennedy
Round, as far as Australia was concerned, was a deal on
wheat which fell far short of Australian objectives and
which required us to convert what had been a voluntary
wheat aid provision of 150,000 tons a year to a commitment
even in bad wheat years of 225,000 tons a years Noone's
throwing their hats up in the air auout this in Australia
anyhow, but there it was.
C. Sir, will you be discussing with Mr. wilson
the subject of the chain of Indian Ocean Island bases?
P. M. No, I wouldn't expect to. I don't want to
be involved in technical defence discussions. I am here
to canvass with him some of the larger policy issues which
concern us both.
Q. But in so far as those island bases represent
a peripheral commitment, would you be satisfied with that
if the British don't w'ant to be committed to the mainland
of Asia?
P. M. No I don't want to comment on that. I'm
not even sufficiently well informed to know how far they
represent effective operational bases.
Q. Mr. Holt, in the last defence White Paper
it does say the eventual aim of British policy is that'
it will remain in South East Asia as long as it is
unstable, but the eventual aim is that these people should
live at peace without the presence of external forces. Now
do you accept that eventually it will be possible to do
without British forces in the area or are you trying to
change the Government's mind even about this?
Oh no, I would myself look to the time when
the countries of the region, having strengthened their
economies and made their own community position secure
would be making not only an increasing contribution to
security in the area but would be able largely to stand
on their own feet though as far ahead as I can see I
think there will be a need for some co-operative defence
effort and, indeed, that makes sense rather than have any
individual country commit so much of its resources to its
own defence. There ought to be security arran ements
among like-minded people which apply to the area as a whole.
Q. Then the debate between Britain and Australia
is over the timing of the eventual withdrawal and you
perhaps are scared that jritain will do it far sooner
than Australia would like.
P. M. , ell you have used the word ' debate'.
One doesn't usually debate things with one's friends unless
one is in the mood to have that kind of dialogue. I would
say that I am looking forward to a discussion and a
mutually helpful discussion on matters in which we are
mutually interested. / 6
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C. But is that the point, that you do accept
that eventually British forces will withdraw and Australia
will not have any objection, out you are anxious to see
that they don't withdraw too soon;
P. M. No, I think it is a matter for the United
Kingdom Government to decide what serves its own interests
best. After all, three-fifths of humankind are located
east of Suez, you know, and the trade potential, the
growth of commerce and industry in that area over the
next 50 years will, I think, astonish the world. I've
been in some of these countries recently and I was
astonished to find how rapid the progress had been in
countries such as Korea and Taiwan. Australia's own trade
has gro7n east of Suez from 15 per cent to 40 per cent
since the 1950' s. Janan has become the largest purchaser
of Australian goods over this neriod and we see tremendous
economic growth in this area.
' ell, I can't imagine that the United
Kingdom which has always had an eye to its own
international trading position, being oblivious to these
thins. Even Hong Kong is a very valuable outlet for China.
It's one of the great enerators of foreign exchange for
China and eventually China will form part of the
international community of nations and 700 million people
will be wanting a lot of things that others can supply.
Q. To sum it up. Sir, you are not pessimistic
that the vital interests of Australia and Britain can ue
reconciled? You don't think there is a natural dichotomy
there that can't be reconciled?
P. M. ' ell I've always ever since I came into
public life believea that Australian interests and the
interests of the United Kingdom were closely linked both in
defence and in trade. After all, you've been until this
year, the largest purchaser of Australian goods. ' e
happen to oe the largest holder of sterling reserves and
as we grow stronger economically I would hope we would be
able to assist you in that direction also.
CANBERRA.