893.24/1722
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Director of the Office of Far Eastern Affairs (Grew)81
With reference to my memoranda of May 23 and 26 reporting conversations with Captain Daniel, USN, regarding the desire of the Chinese Government to obtain, under Lend-Lease, four destroyers and four mine layers, Captain Daniel called on me again today and asked whether we had given further consideration to the problem since our last talk. He said that while the first request for the warships had come from Dr. Sao-ke Alfred Sze, Acting Chairman, China Defense Supplies, Inc., a separate but identical request had been made to the Navy by the Chinese Naval Attaché who is pressing for a decision because certain plans of the Chinese Government for sending sailors for training in the United States depend upon a favorable decision for the transfer of the warships to China.
Captain Daniel said that the ships could not legally be transferred to China except under Lend-Lease provisions and the Naval Attaché had been told that while the Navy Department wished to convenience the Chinese Government so far as feasible, it was not found practical to enter into a definite commitment or to make any promises, even provisionally, until a decision had been reached. The Navy Department would, however, in considering its decision be glad to have a definite statement of our attitude.
I told Captain Daniel that I would discuss the matter further with Mr. Stettinius at an early opportunity, and that I would let him know if we should desire to express a more definite opinion than that which I had conveyed to him on May 23.
- Submitted to the Under Secretary of State.↩