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The Prime Minister to General Freyberg

Your telegram of 18 September.¹

My own statement regarding New Zealand's participation in the occupation force and the initial composition of the brigade group may be delayed for a few more days pending agreement of the United Kingdom and Australian Governments on broad questions of formation and command of the British Commonwealth Force.

There is no objection meanwhile to you making your own statement as amended and I had assumed that you would have done this.

For your own personal and confidential information, Cabinet are agreed that the force should comprise single men of the 13th, 14th and 15th Reinforcements. It seems clear that it would not be possible to organise the force in time on any other basis.