Moscow Embassy Files, Lot F–96—800 China

Memorandum by the Second Secretary of Embassy in the Soviet Union ( Davies ) to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union ( Harriman )

Last night I picked up a Chungking broadcast from the CBS correspondent there. He was relaying to New York a summary of latest news from China.

His broadcast was devoted exclusively to the Government–Communist crisis which has apparently arisen.

He said that General Chu Teh, C-in-C44 of the 18th Group Army (Communist forces), had two days before issued an order to his forces to accept any Japanese surrenders and to occupy Japanese held towns and other establishments.

According to the CBS reporter, Chungking censorship placed a ban on the filing of stories on Chu Teh’s order. Yenan radio, however, broadcast the order, which was picked up in the United States.

Yesterday, the CBS correspondent stated, Chungking lifted the ban when there was published an order issued by the Generalissimo “warning” the Comunists that they were to remain in their present positions until further orders were issued from Chungking and declaring that the Japanese would be held responsible for any arms which they might turn over to the Communists. The Communists will not, of course, obey the Generalissimo’s order.

In the meantime, the CBS reporter said, there were circulating in Chungking rumors of clashes between Government and Communist troops. This, he said, may be the beginning of civil war or revolution, whatever one may wish to call it.

My comment is that, if the CBS correspondent has reported accurately, civil war is on the verge of breaking out in China, if it has not already done so. And I do not know what we can do to prevent it. The only hope is perhaps one of postponement of civil war. I feel that it is useless to try to persuade the USSR to hold back Yenan. The Soviet reply would probably be the embarrassing for us retort that the USSR cannot properly interfere in internal Chinese affairs. [Page 518] If civil war is to be postponed it will have to be realized through Chiang’s voluntarily restraining himself or us exerting pressure on Chiang to hold his hand.

  1. Commander in Chief.