893.0146/633
The Under Secretary of State ( Welles ) to the French Chargé ( Henry )
My Dear Mr. Chargé d’Affaires: In the course of our conversation on February 8, I stated that I would furnish you with information within a few days in response to your inquiries with regard to the reduction and redistribution of American armed forces in north China and with regard to the Chinese customs question.
On January 31 Mr. Hornbeck made an oral statement to Mr. Lucet of your Embassy in regard to our decision to withdraw the Fifteenth Regiment, United States Army, from Tientsin, and to transfer to Tientsin a portion of the American marines now stationed at Peiping.
The matter of effecting a reduction and redistribution of American armed forces in north China is one to which we had been giving consideration for some time before the fighting broke out in north China last July. The change that is now about to take place is what might have occurred earlier had not the conflict arisen between China and Japan. Our decision now to reduce and redistribute our troops in north China does not involve modification of our treaty position in north China. We are continuing to maintain armed forces in both Peiping and Tientsin in accordance with our rights and responsibilities under the Boxer Protocol of 1901.34
The question of the withdrawal of diplomatic representatives and armed forces from north China was raised by the British Government [Page 87] in an aide-mémoire handed to us on December 16 by the British Embassy.35 We replied that we felt that it would be premature to take action in the immediate future but stated that the matter should be kept constantly in mind and expressed the desire to continue to keep in close touch with the British Government. In an aide-mémoire of December 27,36 the British Embassy informed us of the views of the French Government in regard to the desirability of maintaining diplomatic representation and embassy guards in north China and of the decision of the British Government not to withdraw for the present its diplomatic staff and guards from Peiping and Tientsin. The British Government expressed the hope that the French, British, and American Governments would concert together before taking any action in the matter. We replied that we would be pleased to maintain close touch with the French Government, as well as with the British Government, but that we felt that this expression of attitude should be regarded as relating to exchange of information and consultation rather than as constituting an agreement to act or to refrain from action in concert.
With regard to the Chinese customs issue our Ambassador in Tokyo, on February 3, was authorized37 to consult with his French and British colleagues with a view to taking action along parallel lines to obtain certain assurances from the Japanese Government with regard to the preservation of the integrity of the Chinese customs service. We have now under consideration certain questions raised in an aide-mémoire received from the British Embassy and upon completion of that consideration I shall expect to communicate with you further.
I am [etc.]
- Foreign Relations, 1901, Appendix (Affairs in China), p. 312.↩
- Foreign Relations, 1937, vol. iii, p. 814.↩
- ibid., p. 839.↩
- Telegram No. 34, February 3, 5 p.m., p. 65.↩