711.61/6–948: Telegram

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

1043. The new Soviet Ambassador Roschin paid his introductory call on me June 4. He opened the conversation with the question what could be done to improve conditions between our two countries and spoke of the hopes of Russia arising from Smith-Molotov letters6 and the desire of all people for peace. I assured him that my country and the American people also want peace and fear the outbreak of another war. I added that they are harassed by fears and suspicions of Soviet aggression and that something should be done to dispel them. When he agreed, I went on to say that more concretely it was the question of one world or two, or more accurately of two great nations each respecting the other’s right to maintain its own form of government and ideology without interference while avoiding aggressive designs against smaller countries which would disturb confidence. He agreed and asked what could be done. I suggested [Page 282] that his Government might care to instruct its Ambassador in Washington7 to approach the Department of State on the matter or, having lived in China so long, it occurred to me that some neutral country might be willing to serve as middlemen in this wise Chinese method for reaching a solution. I said that in any case I was certain my Government would welcome any such proposal which it was convinced was not being made for propaganda purposes. I added that I saw no reason, as I had said to his predecessor, why our two countries could not be as friendly as I hoped he and I would be.

Roschin then asked my impressions of the China situation to which I replied quite frankly, describing what everyone knows to be true. He asked if I thought the Generalissimo was aware of the real military conditions, to which I replied that he knew the facts but probably not the implications. Roschin volunteered the comment that the Generalissimo’s field officers were perhaps misleading him as to the realities behind the geographical facts.

Sent Department 1043, Department pass Moscow 38.

Stuart
  1. For documentation on the conversations between Ambassador Walter Bedell Smith and Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov in Moscow on May 4 and 9, see vol. iv , “Union of Soviet Socialist Republics” (collection 1). See also Department of State Bulletin, May 23, 1948, pp. 679–683.
  2. Alexander S. Panyushkin.