[matter omitted]

3. Major-General K.W.D. Strong, Director, joint Intelligence
Bureau, London, was present at the meeting for the purpose of
addressing the Committee [1] concerning the functions of the joint
Intelligence Bureau in relation to Singapore, Australia and New
Zealand.

4. General Strong had just returned from Australia and was
evidently very impressed with the work being done in Australia in
regard to Intelligence. He expressed appreciation of the help and
co-operation extended to him during his visit to Australia.

General Strong dealt with the importance of the setting up of the
joint Intelligence Bureau in Australia, and emphasised how closely
it linked Australia with all of the areas with which the British
Defence Committee in South East Asia is concerned.

5. in the course of his remarks, he pointed out that the joint
Intelligence Bureau in the United Kingdom was established with 25%
Service personnel, and the remainder civil servants. It was
administered under the Ministry of Defence, but received its
policy direction from the joint Intelligence Committee in London.

The subjects studied included economic intelligence, food,
agriculture, oil, topography, communications, ports and airfields.

The joint Intelligence Bureau collected information from any and
all sources, including commercial, public and departmental
instrumentalities. in order to make the scope of the Bureau more
valuable, it contained men with business experience as members.

6. General Strong informed the Committee of discussions in
Australia which will be on record in Australia and therefore will
not be repeated unless you so desire.

7. General Strong referred to a matter which had been giving local
authorities some concern; it related to the overlapping of the
various Departments. The question had been raised at a previous
meeting of the Defence Committee, when it was pointed out that
there were at least three different authorities collecting
information in Singapore which might well be centred in one
suitable organisation. General Strong agreed with this and pointed
out that the joint Intelligence Bureau, so far as United Kingdom
was concerned, did not deal with the wider aspect of matters which
were the concern of the Foreign Office, but it was the Joint
Intelligence Bureau's task to study such matters as factory
layouts, production, sabotage and the distribution of manpower. It
was confirmed by General Strong that the Government of Australia
had accepted responsibility for the Pacific, China, Japan, French
Indo-China, New Zealand, Australia and Malaya, but not for Burma
and Ceylon. [2]

8. In reply to questions by His Excellency the Governor-General,
it was stated that, as Australia had decided to base the Joint
Intelligence Bureau for that area, which included Malaya, in
Australia, it was not considered necessary to also set up a Bureau
in Singapore. General Strong, however, said that it had been
agreed by the Government of Australia to appoint one Joint
Intelligence Bureau officer and staff in Singapore and that,
similarly, the joint Intelligence Bureau, London, would establish
one civilian and staff. These two staffs would be responsible for
collating information on behalf of the Joint Intelligence Bureau,
Australia, and also providing the Intelligence Staffs in Singapore
with Joint Intelligence Bureau information.

9. Summed up, it may be said that the trend of General Strong's
address to the committee was that Australia was anxious to do
everything possible in regard to intelligence and to that end
would be willing to furnish information to this area as well as
accept any information which the representatives of the Bureau in
Singapore would pass on to Australia.

10. The Governor-General, at the conclusion of General Strong's
address, said that he could vouch for the wholehearted co-
operation of the British Defence Committee in South East Asia in
this matter, especially as the future strategic policy in South
East Asia was so closely connected with Australia. He welcomed the
arrangement for the establishment of an officer of the Joint
Intelligence Bureau, Australia, in Singapore. He also mentioned
the fact that consideration would be given to the question of the
future position of Burma and Ceylon in the larger scheme of
Defence and Intelligence in this area, and in fact there and then
proposed that a committee should be set up to investigate this
phase. General Strong expressed the view that the Joint
Intelligence Bureau in Australia would welcome the recommendations
of such a committee.

11. The Governor-General suggest that, as the Director of the
joint Intelligence Bureau, London, was a member of the Joint
Intelligence Committee, London, the senior Joint Intelligence
Bureau Liaison Officer, Singapore, should be a member of the joint
Intelligence Committee, Singapore. General Strong, in reply, said
that the Australian Government had requested that their
representative in Singapore should act as an observer on the Joint
Intelligence Committee, but that it was obviously preferable for
their representative to be a full member if this were possible. In
reply to a question, General Strong said that he considered the
Joint Intelligence Bureau in Australia had little hope of the
complete organisation starting work before the 1st July 1947. It
was ultimately decided that the joint Intelligence Committee,
Singapore, would consider what assistance could be provided for
the Joint Intelligence Bureau Liaison Officers in Singapore, and
to further examine how the maximum efficiency could be attained by
the Joint Intelligence Bureau organisation in South East Asia. It
was also decided that the Liaison Officers should be invited to
attend all meetings of the Joint Intelligence Committee,
Singapore.

[matter omitted]

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

17. As will be appreciated from my above remarks, the meeting
covered matters of great interest to Australia, and I would like
to inform you, Sir, that I have been particularly struck with the
very great swing of interest towards Australia at practically
every meeting I have attended in this area. Australia is
definitely being looked to as the bastion of the future. There is
hardly a day goes by without some reference being made at a
discussion or in paper to the dependence of this area on
Australia. They refer to intelligence, defence, commerce or as the
granary of South East Asia. I have attended many important
official social functions and, on every occasion, I have had at
least two or more discussions with someone or other important ...

in regard to Australia's interest in this area. In addition to
this, very many people, as you are aware, are continually passing
through Singapore and, as far as practicable, I have met those
more important persons who invariably express great interest in
Australia. In this regard, I might say that every senior officer,
without exception, here, from the Governor-General downwards, is
very well disposed towards Australia.