793.94/9756
The British Embassy to the Department of State
Aide-Mémoire
His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom have instructed His Majesty’s Representatives at Nanking and Tokyo to place the following proposal before the Chinese and Japanese Governments in the hope of easing the present situation at Shanghai:—
“If both the Chinese and the Japanese will agree to withdraw their forces, including men-of-war, from the Shanghai area, and will both agree that the protection of Japanese nationals in the International Settlement and on extra-Settlement roads should be entrusted to foreign authorities, His Majesty’s Government will be prepared to undertake this responsibility if other Powers will join them in doing so”.
His Majesty’s Representatives have been instructed, when making this communication to the Chinese and Japanese Governments, to emphasize that in this matter His Majesty’s Government are actuated solely by a desire to keep the International Settlement free from hostilities, and to explain that the commitment contemplated would be of a temporary nature to hold good during the continuance of the crisis.
His Majesty’s Government would be glad to learn whether the United States Government would be prepared to accept with them [Page 445] joint responsibility in carrying out the proposal outlined above, and whether they would be prepared to instruct their Representatives at Nanking and Tokyo accordingly. His Majesty’s Government feel that the scheme affords the only possible chance, slender as it is, of restoring the situation at Shanghai and averting even greater danger in the near future. It was put forward by His Majesty’s Ambassador in China, who has discussed it with his diplomatic colleagues and found a large measure of support for it.