793.94/15108: Telegram
The Consul General at Shanghai (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 21—7 a.m.]
519. Japanese Consul General has today communicated to Senior Consul for information of consular representatives a notification also dated today from Commander in Chief of the China Seas Fleet reading as follows:
“The Japanese naval authorities have decided to start operations on June 21st, 1939 at Swatow, Kwantung, and its vicinity. It is requested, therefore, that appropriate measures be taken so that all the nationals and vessels of third powers at or near Swatow may evacuate to places sufficiently distant to keep off the areas of operations and that vessels of third powers may not approach to that port.”
Letter from Japanese Consul General continues as follows:
“Furthermore the Imperial Japanese naval authorities wish to draw the attention of third power authorities to the communications the Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs addressed to the representatives of third powers at Tokyo under date of June 30th [20th],9 October 12th10 and November 7th, 1938.”11
Repeated to Chungking, Peiping, Swatow and Hong Kong. By air mail to Tokyo. Hong Kong please inform United States naval authorities.
- See note No. 18 Go, Asia I, June 20, 1938, Foreign Relations, Japan, 1931–1941, vol. i, p. 602.↩
- See telegram No. 664, October 13, 1938, 4 p.m., from the Ambassador in Japan, ibid., p. 623.↩
- See note No. 41 Go, Asia I, ibid., p. 628.↩