793.00/12–1950
Memorandum by the Director of the Office of Chinese Affairs (Clubb) to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Merchant)
Subject: Department’s Letter of December 4 to Defense
Mr. Young telephoned Friday and in guarded language said that there were various questions brought forward in the Secretary’s letter of December 4 to Secretary Marshall which were unclear to Defense in their implications. It had been originally proposed to have a meeting at lower levels between representatives of Defense and State for clarification of some of those questions—some of which he, Mr. Young, had personally felt perhaps had better not be raised at this time. He now noted, however, that the subject had been submitted to the NSC for consideration. In those circumstances he thought that perhaps the best procedure would be for Defense to present its considerations to the NSC direct, particularly in view of the circumstances that the NSC was scheduled to consider the matter in the relatively near future. Mr. Young said that he, of course, took into consideration the circumstance that Defense would not want to be remiss in failing to reply to the Department of State’s request for reconsideration, but it was [Page 603] felt that the problem had best be considered in its over-all aspect so that there might be over-all clarification.
Mr. Young made it clear that he was not setting forth any official position, and I said that I was, of course, not in a position myself to advise him in respect to procedure. I took the opportunity of asking him, however, whether there was general opinion in Defense that the question in point (Formosa) should not be discussed and a position established at the present time. Mr. Young reported that opinion in Defense was divided on the subject.1
- No reply to Mr. Acheson’s letter of December 4 was received from the Department of Defense before the end of 1950.↩