Foreign Relations of the United States, Diplomatic Papers, 1941, The Far East, Volume IV

740.0011 European War 1939/9974: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State

London, April 15, 1941―10 p.m.
[Received April 15―7:15 p.m.]

1489. Today Johnson and I had lunch with the Chinese Ambassador.⁶¹ The Chinese Ambassador referred to the recent Russo-Japanese agreement as unpleasant but said that in fact it was no more than putting into writing an already accepted situation with the exception that under it Russia recognized Japan’s rights in Manchuria and Japan Russia’s rights in Outer Mongolia. He said he felt it would relieve Japanese troops in Manchuria for service to the south.

Later I saw Eden and Johnson saw Cadogan. Eden was very pleased with your interview with the press⁶² as contained in today’s radio bulletin. I thought he was worried about the situation although his summation on the Russo-Japanese Pact was not very different from the Chinese Ambassador’s. Neither the Chinese Ambassador nor Eden thought that supplies to China would be cut by Russia. Eden told me that when Stafford Cripps had seen Matsuoka in Moscow the latter told him that there was no reason for the English being disturbed about their relations with Japan. This was the only meeting they had and at the end of the interview Cripps gave Matsuoka the Prime Minister’s note which he put in his pocket without opening the envelope. (My No’s. 1288, April 2, 10 p.m. and 1366, April 7, 6 p.m.⁶³)

[Here follows report on other matters.]

In brief comment on the Russo-Japanese pact, Cadogan thought that on [the whole?] it was not good for the British; that its chief danger would lie in encouragement Japan might get for some wild adventure to the south, particularly if Matsuoka whom he distrusts and considers erratic is in effective control of Japanese policy. There is also, he thinks, the danger that Russia may cut off supplies to China in order to please Japan although there has been little evidence in recent months that much Russian material was getting to China.

I think it is now clear that the Duke D’Aosta retired from Addis Ababa into the mountains rather than surrender in order to hold British divisions that might have been used to strengthen the British forces in Libya.

Winant

61. Quo Tai-chi, recently appointed Chinese Minister for Foreign Affairs.
62. See telegram No. 231, April 14, 11 p.m., to the Ambassador in Japan, and footnote 55, p. 947.
63. Latter not printed.