500.A41 a/62: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Warren) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 10—2:22 a.m.]
377. During a talk with Hara87 lasting.for two hours, the day before his death, he said that Japan attached no special importance to the order in which limitation of armaments and Pacific and Far Eastern questions should be discussed, that the former was the important object of the Conference but presented complications because it would be difficult to agree upon a basis for limitation. He stated it might be preferable to first dispose of the other questions as he thought they would be easily settled if the other powers could be made to understand the position of Japan in regard to them. He said that Japan, during his administration, had no territorial ambitions in China or elsewhere. He refuted the allegation that Japan in her Chinese policy was guided by a desire to have China weak. He said that Japan’s policy should be to have a strong Government in China, as he believed that Japan, because of her geographical position, would benefit more economically than any other power by rehabilitation and stable conditions in China. He further stated that Japan favored cooperation with Great Britain and the United States in establishing a common policy with respect to China but felt great caution should be exercised if it came to making loans for rehabilitating her finances because of the propensity of Chinese officials to divert to their own pockets the proceeds of loans.
[Page 85]He said the Government was anxious to withdraw its forces as soon as possible from Siberia, but guarantees were first necessary to protect Japanese residents and their property there and against military operations in Manchuria and Korea and also against establishment by Korean seditionists of bases of communication in Russia and the propagation in Japanese dominions of Bolshevik doctrines, He stated that progress in negotiations at Dairen was now blocked because the Chita delegates desired to have representatives from Moscow take part in the Dairen Conference88 to which Japan could not agree because it felt none of the other powers had relations with Moscow, and also because the negotiations concerned only Siberian questions. He added that Japan had no intention of including among the subjects of discussion at the Dairen Conference the occupation of Sakhalien as the Chita delegates had declared that the Republic did not have jurisdiction over Sakhalien Province and this question, therefore, would have to wait until some future Russian Government would be ready to arrive at a settlement of the Nikolaevsk massacre.
I have since had a long talk with Uchida88a who in statements similar to those of Hara covered the same ground. Uchida will meet the British Ambassador and as stated to me desired to continue Hara’s policy and desires that the delegates be guided by the instructions Hara gave. In view of this it is still important to know the views of Hara.
As I forecast in my 374 of November 5,89 Saionji can be Premier if he will accept, according to best information. He will naturally not announce decision until the Hara burial. Choice is uncertain between two or three if he refuses but the demand of the public is for continuance of the Hara policies during the Conference and of present Cabinet to hold the support in Lower House of Seiyukai party. There is no evidence of any disruption in the Cabinet and the Elder Statesmen appear to be consulting all the necessary elements to be assured of an acceptable choice.
- Takashi Hara, Japanese Prime Minister.↩
- See vol. ii, pp. 713 passim.↩
- Count Yasuya Uchida, Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs.↩
- Not printed.↩