762.9411/90: Telegram
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State
[Received 5 p.m.]
1270. The Chinese Ambassador called on me yesterday afternoon and stated that he had seen Assistant Commissar for Foreign Affairs Lozovski in the afternoon the day before, pursuant to an appointment for the express purpose of discussing the German-Italian-Japanese pact with him. He said that Lozovski had minimized the effect of the [Page 661] treaty; had expressed the opinion that it was primarily directed against the United States; and had stated that the editorials referred to in my Nos. 1249, September 30, and 1245 [1255], October 1, noon,74 enunciated the official view of the Soviet Government. Lozovski also expressed the opinion that the tripartite pact would bring forth greater assistance from [the] United States to Britain and from the United States and Britain to China. In response to the Ambassador’s inquiry as to whether the pact would affect the Soviet attitude toward China, Lozovski [said] it would not. The Ambassador then inquired whether a consequence of this treaty would not be the sending of supplies from Germany and Italy to Japan by the Trans-Siberian Railway to which Lozovski indicated that such would not be the case.
With respect to an observation by the Ambassador that China was dependent for aid in its war against Japan upon Great Britain and the United States and the Soviet Union, Lozovski remarked sarcastically that the principal aid Great Britain had furnished China thus far had been to close the Burma Road at a critical time, that the main assistance the United States rendered China had been to sell huge quantities of scrap metal, copper, and oil to Japan whereas the Soviet Union had furnished China with immense quantities of war materials.
In discussing the pact as an alignment of nations Lozovski gave the Ambassador the impression that he was of the opinion that three blocs existed at the present time: (1) the German-Italian-Japanese bloc; (2) the Anglo-American bloc; and (3) the Soviet Union. In general the Ambassador gained the impression that while Lozovski sought to minimize the effect of the pact and to attach little importance thereto the Soviet Union is in reality seriously concerned.
In response to my inquiry the Ambassador stated that he had definite information to the effect that the number of Japanese troops in Manchuria at the present time is about 175,000—this being the same number that have been there during the last year.