59A543 Part 6, Box 351 Folder 500 Foreign Ministers Meeting, Moscow: Telegram
The Secretary of State 52 to the Chargé in China (Robertson)
248. See Foreign Minister Wang at once and inform him as follows:
Agreement has been reached with Molotov and Bevin in regard to terms of reference for the Far Eastern Commission and the Allied [Page 887] Council for Japan.52a Modifications from drafts handed the Chinese Embassy in Washington53 at end of last month have been agreed upon and are as follows:
Far Eastern Commission
Article II–A paragraph 3 add after governments “in accordance with the voting procedure provided for in Article V–2 hereunder.”
Article II–C substitute the following: “C. The Commission in its activities will proceed from the fact that there has been formed an Allied Council and will respect existing control machinery in Japan, including the chain of command from the United States Government to the Supreme Commander and the Supreme Commander’s command of occupation forces.”
Article III: substitute for paragraphs 3 and 4 the following inclusive paragraph 3:
“The United States Government may issue interim directives to the Supreme Commander pending action by the Commission whenever urgent matters arise not covered by policies already formulated by the Commission; provided that any directives dealing with fundamental changes in the Japanese constitutional structure or in the regime of control, or dealing with a change in the Japanese Government as a whole will be issued only following consultation and following the attainment of agreement in the Far Eastern Commission.”
Allied Council
Paragraph 2 altered to read after “Chinese member;”—“and a member representing jointly the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and India.” Paragraph 4 altered to read as follows:
“4. The Supreme Commander shall issue all orders for the implementation of the Terms of Surrender, occupation, and control of Japan, and directives supplementary thereto. In all cases action will be carried out under and through the Supreme Commander who is the sole executive authority for the Allied Powers within the area of his command. He will consult and advise with the Council in advance of the issuance of orders on matters of substance, the exigencies of the situation permitting. His decisions upon these matters shall be controlling.
If, regarding the implementation of policy decisions of the Far Eastern Commission on questions concerning a change in the regime of control, changes in the constitutional structure, and changes in the Japanese Government as a whole, a member of the Council disagrees with the Supreme Commander (or his Deputy) the Supreme Commander will withhold the issuance of orders on these questions pending agreement thereon in the Far Eastern Commission.
In cases of necessity the Supreme Commander may take decisions concerning the change of individual ministers of the Japanese Government, [Page 888] or concerning the filling of vacancies created by the resignation of individual members of the cabinet, after appropriate preliminary consultation with representatives of the other Allied Powers on the Allied Council.”
Paragraph 5 deleted.
These modifications do not affect China’s participation and are agreeable to Molotov and Bevin. The Soviet Government is now prepared to join the Far Eastern Commission and the establishment of an Allied Council is made possible. Please endeavor urgently to obtain Chinese concurrence in the foregoing revisions in time for me to receive notice thereof not later than Sunday morning, December 23.54
- The Secretary of State was in Moscow attending the Conference of Foreign Ministers, December 16–26, 1945.↩
- For the agreement on the Far Eastern Commission and Allied Council for Japan, see the second section of the Communiqué on the Moscow Conference of the Three Foreign Ministers, in telegram 4824, from Moscow, December 27, 1945, vol. ii, pp. 815, 817.↩
- See telegrams 2433 and 2434, December 1, 6 p.m., to Moscow, p. 874.↩
- In telegram 15, December 23, 2 a.m., from Chungking, the Chargé in China replied that the Chinese Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs (Liu Chieh) had notified the American Embassy of his Government’s concurrence in the proposed revisions; telegram received at Moscow, December 23, 9:50 a.m. (740.00119–Council/12–1445).↩