Marshall Mission Files, Lot 54–D270
Minutes of Meeting Between General Marshall and General Yu Tai-wei at No. 5 Ning Hai Road, Nanking, November 21, 1946, 11 a.m.
| Also present: | Col. Underwood |
General Yu Ta-wei asked for a review of General Marshall’s recent conversations with General Chou En-lai, particularly with respect to cease fire arrangements. General Marshall read pertinent portions of the minutes of his last three meetings (10 November,48 12 November,49 and 16 November50) with General Chou En-lai. His reading covered primarily General Chou’s view of the relationship between the convocation of the National Assembly and cease fire arrangements. General Chou considered that once the National Assembly was called, the Communist Party would require a settlement of the entire military program before agreeing to a cease fire order. General Marshall also covered General Chou’s fear of an attack on Yenan and his (General Chou’s) personal belief that if such an attack were made, the Communist Party would withdraw its entire personnel from Executive Headquarters, Nanking, Shanghai, and Chungking. General Marshall informed General Yu Ta-wei that he had requested. [Page 556] General Chou to obtain the formal views of the Yenan authorities concerning General Marshall’s acceptability as a mediator. General Marshall referred to Dr. Stuart’s conversation in Peiping with General Yeh, Communist Commissioner at Executive Headquarters, in which General Yeh mentioned the possibility of Dr. Stuart and General Yeh going to Yenan to discuss current issues. General Marshall said that this trip was not certain by any means, since General Yeh had little authority in the matter, but that if the trip did take place, General Marshall probably would not go as his presence would create a translation problem.
General Yu Ta-wei was confused concerning the relationship in General Chou’s mind of the National Assembly to cease fire arrangements. General Marshall clarified the issue once more by reading from the minutes. General Yu Ta-wei attached considerable importance to General Chou’s statements on the following three points:
- a.
- Relationship of the National Assembly to cease firing arrangements;
- b.
- Continued Communist representation in Executive Headquarters and at Nanking for the purpose of capitalizing on any new chance for successful negotiations;
- c.
- General Marshall’s request for Yenan’s view of his acceptability as a mediator.
General Yu Ta-wei asked that he be furnished an extract of the minutes which covered these three points in particular. General Marshall agreed to furnish him an extract of everything which he had read (See Incl. 1, Extract of minutes51).
General Yu Ta-wei asked if General Marshall thought there was still a possibility that the Communist Party might join the National Assembly. General Marshall stated that he could only make the merest guess, but that he thought there was no such possibility unless the Generalissimo would rigidly observe the PCC agreements regarding the drafting of the Constitution. He said that the Generalissimo recently indicated to him that he probably would not follow this procedure since it would alienate a large part of the party. Therefore, General Marshall felt that there was very little hope that the Communist Party would come into the National Assembly. He stated that if the National Government would cleanly and openly permit the application of the PCC agreements to the drafting of the Constitution, the Communist Party would have very little ground for boycotting the National Assembly.
The meeting closed with General Yu Ta-wei presenting a situation map (See Incl. 2)52 as of noon 20 November, which contained plots of Communist offensive operations.