811.2222 (1940)/3744
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hamilton)
During the course of a call Dr. Liu Chieh1 brought to my attention the situation of Chinese students in the United States under Selective Service requirements. Dr. Liu said that last May an arrangement had been worked out with the Selective Service whereby foreign students in the United States were exempted from military service in as much as such students were not regarded as residents of the United States. More recently, Dr. Liu said, an increasing number of students were writing to the Chinese Embassy reporting that local draft boards were asking them to call and the local draft boards were showing greater reluctance to continue to regard Chinese students as exempted from induction into the United States Army. Dr. Liu said that at times the Embassy took cases up with the Selective Service, that this was a somewhat cumbersome procedure, that in some cases exemptions had been granted by Selective Service up to June 30 of this year, but that the prospect of exemption after that time seemed to be less than it had been heretofore.
Dr. Liu said that according to an item in the press of several months ago an agreement had been made between this Government and the Mexican Government whereby Mexican students in the United States were exempted from Selective Service.2
Dr. Liu said that a few days ago the Chinese Embassy had received an instruction from the Chinese Government to take up with this Department the situation of Chinese students in the United States with a view to concluding some arrangement similar to that made between this Government and the Mexican Government whereby Chinese students in this country would continue to be exempted from Selective Service.
Dr. Liu emphasized that Chinese students pursuing their education in this country were in the eyes of the Chinese Government doing [Page 814] something which was quite important from point of view of China’s war effort and the reconstruction period that would follow the war. Dr. Liu pointed out that a course of study which to this Government might not seem to be related directly to the war effort might be so related in the eyes of the Chinese Government. He referred to the fact that China had a great dearth of qualified, educated personnel in many lines. He stated that continuance of the education of Chinese who were studying here was a matter of importance to the Chinese Government.
He said that his approach related only to Chinese who were pursuing their studies here.
Dr. Liu expressed the hope that this matter might receive prompt attention.
I told Dr. Liu that I had no previous information in regard to the reported arrangement with the Mexican Government, that we would be glad to look into the question which he had raised, and that we would later get in touch with him in regard to the matter.