The Taiwan Strait crisis; U.S. concern with the defense of Taiwan and the maintenance of peace in the Taiwan area; the Formosa resolution; efforts to bring the problem before the U.N. Security Council; negotiations leading to the Republic of China’s evacuation of the Tachen Islands with U.S. assistance; diplomatic efforts to bring about a peaceful solution to the crisis; the question of U.S. policy with regard to Quemoy and Matsu; the question of Nationalist response to the growth of Communist air power; the Robertson–Radford mission to Taipei; the U.S. response to Premier Chou En-lai’s proposal of negotiations; diplomatic efforts to obtain the release of American prisoners in the People’s Republic of China; negotiations leading to the establishment of the Ambassadorial talks at Geneva between representatives of the United States and the People’s Republic of China1
1. For previous documentation on this subject, see Foreign Relations, 1952–1954, vol. xiv, Part 1, pp. 1 ff.
151. Letter From the Ambassador in the Republic of China (Rankin) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Robertson)
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–1355. Secret; Official–Informal.
152. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 14, 1955, 8:43 a.m.
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.00/3–1555. Secret. Drafted by Merchant on March 15. The time of the meeting is from Dulles’ appointment diary. (Princeton University Library, Dulles Papers)
153. Memorandum From the President’s Staff Secretary (Goodpaster) to the President
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, ACW Diaries. Top Secret. A handwritten note on the source text by Goodpaster states that he orally informed the President of the substance of the document.
154. Memorandum of a Conversation, Washington, March 14, 1955, 3:05 p.m.
Source: Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 60 D 627, CF 439. Secret. The source text bears no indication of the drafter. Robertson’s draft, with handwritten revisions by the Secretary, is ibid., Central Files, 793.5/3–1655. The time of the meeting is from Dulles’ appointment diary. (Princeton University Library, Dulles Papers)
156. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 16, 1955
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–1655. Secret. Drafted by Merchant.
157. Memorandum Received From the British Ambassador (Makins)
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–1655. Secret. The source text bears a note that it was handed to the Secretary by Makins on March 16.
158. National Intelligence Estimate
Source: Department of State, INR–NIE Files. Secret. National Intelligence Estimates (NIEs) were high-level interdepartmental reports presenting appraisals of foreign policy problems. NIEs were drafted by officers from those agencies represented on the Intelligence Advisory Committee (IAC), discussed and revised by inter-departmental working groups coordinated by the Office of National Estimates of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), approved by the IAC, and circulated under the aegis of the CIA to the President, appropriate officers of cabinet level, and the National Security Council. The Department of State provided all political and some economic sections of NIEs.
A note on the cover sheet reads as follows:
“Submitted by the
Director of Central Intelligence. The following intelligence organizations participated in the preparation of this estimate: The Central Intelligence Agency and the intelligence organizations of the Departments of State, the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, and The Joint Staff.
“Concurred in by the Intelligence Advisory Committee on 16 March 1955. Concurring were the Special Assistant, Intelligence, Department of State; the Assistant Chief of Staff, G–2, Department of the Army; the Director of Naval Intelligence; the Director of Intelligence, USAF; the Deputy Director for Intelligence, The Joint Staff; and the Atomic Energy Commission Representative to the IAC. The Assistant to the Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, abstained, the subject being outside of its jurisdiction.”
159. Memorandum From the Director of Central Intelligence (Dulles) to the Secretary of State (Dulles)
Source: Department of State, INR Files: Lot 58 D 776, China. Secret.
161. Memorandum From the Secretary of Defense (Wilson) to the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, Miscellaneous Series, Conferences on Formosa. Top Secret. The source text was sent to Goodpaster with a covering memorandum dated March 23 from Colonel Carey A. Randall, USMC, Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense, stating that Wilson had written it as a result of conversations with the Secretary of State on March 21 and with the Armed Forces Policy Council on March 22. A note in Goodpaster’s handwriting on Randall’s memorandum reads: “President briefed on the attachment 24 Mar. 55. Indicated he thought this was already being done. G.” A copy of Wilson’s memorandum, sent to Secretary Dulles with a covering letter of March 23 from Randall, is in Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–2355.
162. Telegram From the Secretary of State to the Embassy in the United Kingdom
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 330/3–2355. Secret; Priority. Repeated for information to New York.
163. Memorandum From the Chief of the Military Assistance Advisory Group, Formosa (Chase) to the Republic of China Defense Minister (Yu)
Source: Department of State, Taipei Embassy Files: Lot 62 F 83. Top Secret. Sent via Acting Chief of General Staff General Peng Meng-chi.
164. Memorandum of Discussion of the 242d Meeting of the National Security Council, Washington, March 24, 1955
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, NSC Records. Top Secret. Drafted by Gleason on March 25.
165. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 24, 1955, 3:30 p.m.
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.00/3–2455. Confidential. The time of the meeting is from Dulles’ appointment diary. (Princeton University Library, Dulles Papers)
166. Telegram From the Representative at the United Nations (Lodge) to the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 611.95A241/3–2455. Secret; Priority.
167. Memorandum From the Counselor of the Department of State (MacArthur) to the Secretary of State
Source: Department of State, EA Files: Lot 66 D 225, Relations with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Top Secret.
168. Message From British Foreign Secretary Eden to the Secretary of State
Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, White House Memoranda. Secret. A copy is also in Department of State, S/P Files: Lot 66 D 70, China. Received with a covering note of March 25 from Scott to Dulles.
169. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 25, 1955, 5:34 p.m.
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–2555. Secret. The time of the meeting is from Dulles’ appointment diary. (University Library, Dulles Papers)
170. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 26, 1955, 11:30 a.m.
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.00/3–2655. Top Secret. Another memorandum of this conversation by Colonel Randall was sent to Secretary Dulles with a covering memorandum of March 28 from Randall. (Ibid., 793.00/3–2855) The time of the meeting is from Randall’s memorandum of conversation.
171. Telegram From the Secretary of State to the Embassy in the United Kingdom
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.00/3–2655. Secret; Priority. Drafted by Dulles.
172. Diary Entry by the President
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries. Apparently dictated by the President to Ann Whitman.
173. Memorandum From the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the Secretary of Defense
Source: JCS Files, CCS 381 Formosa (11–8–48) Sec. 20. Top Secret.
175. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 28, 1955, 4:30 p.m.
Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, White House Memoranda. Secret; Personal and Private. Drafted by Hanes. In the list of participants Bissell is identified with the Foreign Operations Administration, presumably this is Richard M. Bissell, Jr., Special Assistant (for Plans and Programs) to the Director of Central Intelligence.
176. Message From British Foreign Secretary Eden to the Secretary of State
Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, White House Memoranda. Secret. Received with a covering note of March 29 from Scott. A copy, attached to a memorandum of conversation by Key, dated March 29, is also in Department of State, Central Files, 793.00/3–2955.
177. Letter From President Eisenhower to British Prime Minister Churchill
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, International Series. Top Secret; Eyes Only. A memorandum of conversation by Secretary Dulles, dated March 29, 1955, reads in part as follows:
“I went over with the President the draft of his letter to Churchill about Far Eastern matters and suggested one or two minor verbal changes on the passage dealing with Laos.
“We discussed a memorandum of George Humphrey about Formosa and I pointed out that it would be quite unrealistic to demand formal acceptance by the Chinese Communists of the persistence of the Nationalist régime on Formosa and that while this gambit might be good from the standpoint of domestic opinion, it would almost surely be treated as an insincere effort on the part of foreign countries. I pointed out that I had several times said that we would not require the Chinese Communists to renounce their claims to Formosa, but merely to renounce the effort to take Formosa by force.” (Ibid., Dulles Papers, Meetings with the President)
The memorandum under reference has not been found.
178. Letter From President Eisenhower to Lewis W. Douglas
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries. Personal and Confidential. Douglas, chairman of the board of directors of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, had served as Ambassador to the United Kingdom, 1947–1950.
179. Memorandum of a Conversation, Washington, March 30, 1955, 12:30 p.m.
Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, Legislative Meetings. Confidential. According to a note on the source text, Minnich prepared the memorandum from notes supplied by the office of Major General Wilton B. Persons, USA (retired), Deputy Assistant to the President.
180. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, March 30, 1955, 3:35 p.m.
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 793.5/3–3055. Secret. The time of the meeting is from Dulles’ appointment diary. (Princeton University Library, Dulles Papers)