Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, China and Japan, Volume XIV, Part 1

790B.13/12–1954: Telegram

No. 451
The Ambassador in Cambodia (McClintock) to the Department of State¹

secret

Phnom Penh, December 19, 1954—3 p.m.

390. Following is composite account as given me by Prime Minister of Burma and members of his party of their visit to Hanoi and Communist China.² Burmese have spent two days in Cambodia returning state visit of King to Burma. They flew directly from Canton to Phnom Penh with gas stop at Hanoi on December 16 and depart tomorrow for Rangoon.

When I spoke of the deep anger stirring American people over imprisonment of our flyers on trumped-up spy Charges, Burmese admitted Chinese motives were suspect, but then asked in apparent sincerity why US had been stampeded by this incident into abrupt signature of defense treaty with Chiang Kai-shek. When I said there was no connection between these two matters and that defense treaties were not negotiated by US in reprisal for unlawful acts by other countries, they merely smiled knowingly.

Prime Minister said in interest of peace he had intervened with Chou En-lai in behalf of US prisoners, but did not indicate this démarche had had any result. He gave me copy of his speech of December 10 in Peking³ which presumably Department has from wireless file.

Burmese were very much impressed with “tremendous” scope of Russian economic and technical assistance as seen particularly in North China. They said 2,000 Russian advisors were providing on-the-spot training in China. They reported from visit to Dairen that Russians are evacuating that port in accordance with recently signed agreement.

Burmese were surprised at air of prosperity in Shanghai and fact that city’s population has increased to 6½ million. Although shipping was not visible in large proportions, they said rail traffic from Eastern Europe to China was growing and that they had seen through freight cars from Czechoslovakia and Poland.

President of Burmese Supreme Court, Myint Thein, said he had been received by head of Communist Chinese Supreme Court and from his own observation (he was formerly Burmese Ambassador in Peking) he was satisfied Chinese Communist courts dealt out justice evenly so far as private parties were concerned. He could not, however, vouch for degree of justice in cases where state itself was party against a private citizen or corporation.

[Here follows the remainder of the telegram concerning Prime Minister Nu’s visits to Hanoi and to Cambodia.]

McClintock

1. Also sent to Rangoon and pouched to Saigon.
2. Burmese Prime Minister U Nu visited the People’s Republic of China Dec. 1–16; the text of a communiqué issued on Dec. 12 concerning his talks with Premier Chou En-lai is printed in Documents on International Affairs, 1954, pp. 333–335.
3. Telegram 463 from Rangoon, Dec. 13, summarized the speech, which declared U Nu’s intention to work for understanding between the United States and the People’s Republic of China. (790B.13/12–1354)