Office of the Historian

793.003/1033: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in China (Gauss)17

Washington, December 18, 1942—6 p.m.

1244. Department’s 1225, December 14, 8 p.m. We have arranged to hand to the Chinese Embassy tomorrow morning, Saturday, December 19, a document in reply to the Chinese Embassy’s document of December 7 in regard to the draft treaty on extraterritoriality and supplemental exchange of notes.

In the document we are informing the Chinese that we concur in the Chinese suggestion in paragraph B (1) of the Chinese Embassy’s memorandum of December 7 (our 1204, December 9, 8 p.m.18) and [Page 405] that we are agreeable to including in the supplemental exchange of notes their suggestion of December 7 as revised in part by their suggestion of December 12 in regard to inland navigation and coasting trade.19 In this connection, the language in final form of the first sentence of the second quoted paragraph of paragraph numbered 1 of the Department’s 1225, December 14, 8 p.m., will read: “It is mutually understood that the Government of the United States of America relinquishes …20 in the waters of the Republic of China and that the Government of the Republic of China is prepared to take over any American properties that may have been engaged for those purposes and to pay adequate compensation therefor.”

We are also informing the Chinese that we consider that this Government and the Chinese Government have now reached complete agreement in regard to the draft treaty and notes; and we are suggesting that the treaty and notes be signed on the morning of January 1, 1943 (which date has in addition to its usual significance that of being the first anniversary of the Declaration by United Nations21).

Please inform Dr. Soong.

Hull
  1. The substance of this telegram was transmitted to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom in Department’s telegram No. 6446, December 18, midnight.↩
  2. Not printed; it repeated summary of the Chinese memorandum of December 7, p. 392.↩
  3. See footnote 13, p. 400.↩
  4. Omission indicated in the original.↩
  5. Department of State Executive Agreement Series No. 236, or 55 Stat. 1600.↩