Foreign Relations of the United States, 1948, The Far East and Australasia, Volume VI

890.0146/3–148

The Ambassador in China ( Stuart ) to the Secretary of State

confidential
No. 100

Nanking , March 1, 1948.
[Received March 10, 1948.]

Sir: I have the honor to refer to the Department’s Instruction No. 12 dated January 27, 1948¹ referring to a memorandum of conversation in which the former Director of the East Asiatic Affairs Department of the Foreign Office, Mr. Yang Yun-chu, disclaims any official intent on the part of China to claim the Liu Chiu Islands.²

There is transmitted a memorandum of conversation¹ between an officer of the Embassy and Mr. Huang Cheng-ming, present Director of the Department of East Asiatic Affairs of the Foreign Office in which the latter declares that Mr. Yang’s statements do not represent the present views of the Chinese Government. Although Mr. Huang states that he has no authority to speak officially on behalf of the Government, it would appear that the Chinese Government does not, in fact, adhere to the position formerly stated by Mr. Yang. It is probable that his statements did not at the time they were made represent a considered and authoritative expression of the Chinese Government’s attitude on the question.

Respectfully yours,

For the Ambassador:

Lewis Clark

Minister-Counsellor of Embassy

1. Not printed.
2. See despatch 477, June 22, 1942, from Chunking, Foreign Relations, 1942, China, p. 732.
1. Not printed.