740.0011 Pacific War/3557: Telegram
The Ambassador in China (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 26—2:33 p.m.]
2246. Drumright in telegram November 17 from Loyang reports as follows:
According to Chinese believed to have reliable connections who recently saw Wang Ching-wei and high Japanese military officials at Nanking, Japan eager to arrange peace with Chungking and continues to make unsuccessful offers. Japanese army leaders professedly think Japan can use reported United Nations differences to strengthen Japanese position in Pacific, hoping to play British off against Americans or Soviets against British. Matsuoka2 departed Japan October 7 for Soviet Union to try arrange Russo-German peace. Wang still has little power and his efforts expand authority blocked by Japanese. He visited Japan end September to seek cessation of grain seizures and cotton control in occupied areas but his request denied.
Repeated to Moscow.
- Yosuke Matsuoka, Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs, July 22, 1940–July 16, 1941.↩