893.00/3–1847
The Consul General at Dairen (Benninghoff) to the Ambassador in China (Stuart)55
Sir: I have the honor to enclose a copy of a memorandum dated February 20, 194753 prepared by the Assistant Military Attaché at Shanghai referring to a communication from this office to the effect that there were no Chinese Communist troops in this Area and requesting a clarification thereof. This memorandum was received under cover of a memorandum from the Consulate General at Shanghai dated February 21, 1947.
In view of the importance of the subject, this reply is being prepared in despatch form rather than in an informal memorandum to the Consulate General at Shanghai. The subject has been mentioned several times in this office’s communications, the latest being despatch No. 67 of February 8, 1947, entitled “Chinese Communist Influence in Dairen”. Copies of such despatches are not as a rule forwarded to Shanghai. However, a copy hereof is being so forwarded.
Ever since their entry into the Port Arthur Naval Base Area in August 1945, the Russians have claimed sole responsibility for its defense, and for the preservation of law and order. In the early days Russian troops actually carried out police duties, not only in the city of Dairen but in the Area as a whole. In the autumn of 1945 they set up a local Chinese regime for the purpose of holding office until such time as the National Government should arrive. At no time has it been claimed that this puppet regime had any connection with administrative organizations set up by the Chinese Communists in areas under their control. In fact, both the Soviets and the local Chinese officials are extremely careful to avoid reference to the Chinese Communists [Page 504] or to the Eighth Route Army. This attitude was necessitated by the fact that in the Sino-Soviet Treaty of August 1945 the Russians acknowledged the National Government to be the legal government of China.
It has been the policy of the Russians to give the local Chinese regime mentioned above as much responsibility as possible, within, of course, the framework of broad policy determined by the Russians. At the same time they have permitted the admixture of many out-and-out Communists from Yenan and Shantung into the administration, resulting recently in a notable increase of Communist influence in the city and the Area. No direct and open identification has yet been made, however, with the Communist Party.
One of the first acts of the new regime was to set up a Peace Preservation (Pao-an) Corps, with Russian assistance and Japanese equipment. This organization not only carries out normal police functions, but it also has railway guards, fire brigades, and a number of constabulary or militia detachments. Its exact organization is not known, but doubtless it has a structure similar to that to be expected in a Communist organization as described in the Assistant Military Attaché’s memorandum under reference. Observation is difficult, as this office’s personnel is restricted to the city of Dairen, but there may be as many as ten thousand in the Corps within the Area. Recruiting has recently been intensified, and, according to reliable reports, unemployed coolies and the like are taken off the streets and put into uniforms—a practice which has recently caused the migration of many Chinese to the Mukden area. It has also been learned that after a short period of training, whole detachments are shipped elsewhere to join Communist armed forces, in which case they probably change uniforms at the border of the Area.
So far as this office has been able to ascertain after several months of inquiry in various quarters, this Corps is the only organized body of Chinese in uniform within this Area. It is known that several thousand Communist troops entered the Area in retreat before the Nationalist advance to Pulantien, but they did not enter as military units. The Acting Soviet Consul General has stated that such refugees were disarmed by Soviet Border Guards—but his information has not always been reliable.
When this office telegraphed that there were no Communist troops in the Area, it meant that according to all information at its disposal the Soviet Army had not permitted the entry of combat units of the Eighth Route Army into the Port Arthur Naval Base Area. In this [Page 505] connection it should be remembered that the Russians claim sole responsibility for the defense of the Area under Article IV of the Agreement on Port Arthur, and that Soviet officials deny the right of Chinese troops to be garrisoned in the Area except in Dairen city itself when it is declared a free port.
The local Peace Preservation Corps can probably, for statistical purposes, be included within Communist forces, but the distinction between it and the Communist armed forces available for combat against Government troops must be kept in mind. It should be remembered that the Russians are here in sufficient strength to prevent any clash within the Area between Chinese elements.
The situation within the city of Dairen at present, accordingly, is that the Peace Preservation Corps acts as a police organization and deals with the Chinese and Japanese population, but not the Russian. There is a small Russian garrison in the city, at the most only a few hundred, which is responsible for the preservation of law and order among the several thousand Russian civilians and military personnel. The two are seldom known to work together, although of course the Russians step in whenever they deem it necessary.
Outside the city, the remainder of the Area has a Soviet garrison estimated variously up to 50,000. They have little to do with the Chinese population, leaving administration and police matters as much as possible to the local regimes, and the Peace Preservation Corps in its several functions.
Although in a broad sense it might be permissible to include the locally recruited Peace Preservation Corps as a unit of the Communist armed forces, it nevertheless remains a fact that no Chinese Communist unit as such has been brought into the city; a relationship exists, but it has never been acknowledged either by the Russians or by the Chinese, and would probably be disavowed by both of them.
In conclusion, mention should be made of the reports that the Russians have aided Communist units in escaping from Dairen to Shantung. Persistent inquiry over a period of four months has failed to unearth any evidence in support of this allegation. There is considerable junk traffic between Dairen and Chefoo, and doubtless un-uniformed Communist soldiers have passed back and forth. The Consulate General is reasonably certain, however, that Dairen has not been used as the embarcation point for any Communist military unit of any size being transported as a unit. The same probably holds true for the rest of the Area under Soviet control, but with less certainty.
Respectfully yours,