File No. 893.00/2900

The Japanese Embassy to the Department of State

The continued civil strife which has divided China for the last two years has been a source of grave concern to the Japanese Government. It is as harmful to the interests of foreign powers as it is disastrous to the welfare of China herself, while the general atmosphere of unrest which prevails in the country encourages the malign activities of the enemy and hampers the effective cooperation of China with the Allies at this crisis of the world’s history.

Careful survey of the situation in China has convinced the Japanese Government that a serious attempt should now be made by the Governments of Japan, the United States, Great Britain, France, and Italy in the form of joint representation to the leaders both in the North and in the South to impress upon them the urgent and supreme importance of arriving at an amicable settlement of their differences and of securing to China peace and unity within the borders of the country.

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There is no single fact to point to anything which insurmountably stands in the way of the desired reconciliation if the leaders of both the contending factions should approach problems from a higher plane of thought than that of mere consideration of personal sentiment or of legal technicality.

It should be made clear to them that the five Governments take no interest in the particular terms of adjustment which it remains exclusively for the Chinese themselves to arrange.

Assurances should further be given that the joint representation now suggested is of an entirely friendly nature and does not contemplate any ulterior plan of intervention.

If the foregoing proposals should meet with the approval of the United States Government it is hoped that its representatives at Peking and at Canton will be instructed to act in the sense indicated in concert with their colleagues of the powers interested.

It is the intention of the Japanese Government that the form and other particulars of such representations shall be left for the representatives of the five powers at Peking to discuss and to decide, having regard to the importance of avoiding all appearance of recognition of the political organization at Canton.