795.00/9–1151

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Merchant)

top secret

Subject: Bombing of Yalu River Dams

Participants: Mr. R. H. Scott, Assistant Under Secretary, British Foreign Office
Lt. Gen. K. McLean, Chief Staff Officer to the British Minister of Defense.
Mr. Livingston T. Merchant, Acting Assistant Secretary for Far Eastern Affairs

During the coffee break of the morning session of the US–UK discussions this morning the Secretary and Mr. Morrison agreed that General McLean and Mr. Scott should discuss with me the background of the proposed removal of restriction on General Ridgway’s air action against the Yalu River dams, with a view to the British getting off a telegram immediately to inform the Cabinet of this proposal.

I explained to the two British members that we were talking in terms only of the dams and of the power installations on the Korean side of the border. I said that this was a self-imposed limitation and had not been a matter of agreement with the British or anybody else. I also reminded them that we had in the past bombed the Korean end of the principal bridges across the Yalu, and referred to the Secretary’s reminder to Mr. Morrison that one of the dams served as one of the principal highways across the river for military traffic. In response to their questions, I said that the original exemption from attack on these targets was in point of time before the massive Chinese intervention land arose, as I understood it, from a desire to avoid at that time needlessly provocative actions which might bring the Chinese in. In reply to a question, I said that the prohibition against invading [Page 900] the Manchurian air space would remain in effect. General McLean expressed some fear that on bombing missions against the dams the fighter cover might most naturally be tempted to follow attacking fighters across the border. I said that the very strength of our Air Force’s emphasis on the fact that the prohibition against crossing the border had an adverse effect on the morale of the pilots, was testimony to the fact that we were scrupulously abiding by this injunction. In answer to a query, I said that we believed power was still going from these stations to Manchuria and Port Arthur.

From their closing remarks, I gathered that General McLean planned to get off in the afternoon a telegram to the British Chiefs of Staff and Scott would send a parallel message to the Foreign Office. From the attitude of both of them I inferred that they would put this up as a reasonable operation.

Mr. Scott subsequently confirmed to me that Mr. Morrison supported our position in his telegram to London on this matter.