222. Memorandum by the Assistant Secretary of State for Policy Planning (Smith)0
POSSIBLE S/P REVIEW OF US CHINA POLICY
I raised this subject with the Secretary after the NSC briefing today on the basis of the attached memo.1
The Secretary asked what aspects of the policy would be studied, whether there are experts on the area presently assigned to the Staff, and what would be the purpose of such a study. He referred to the danger of possible leaks if a study of this kind were to be made, and mentioned the serious implications any word of it might have on the security of the regime on Taiwan. He agreed that his remarks in the San Francisco speech [Page 463] at the Lions Convention,2 to the effect that this policy is continuously under review in the Department, probably represents the best answer to questions which might be asked on this subject by Congressional Committees or others. He went on to say that the results of his recent trip to Taipei demonstrate this fact and the flexibility of the Department’s approach to the problem.
The Secretary mentioned a remark made to him last night by Prime Minister Diefenbaker of Canada. The latter said that he was greatly relieved and enthusiastic about the outcome of the Secretary’s trip and he felt that the danger of Chiang’s getting himself and the US into a war with the Chinese Communists was removed.
In conclusion, the Secretary said that as long as he is Secretary of State there will be no change in US policy toward the Chinese Communists so far as US recognition or their admission to the UN are concerned. On this basis, he has no objection to S/P’s examining his San Francisco speech to see whether the subordinate policy elements in it should be reviewed. He was emphatic, however, that the basic concept of US policy toward Communist China as set forth in it should remain unchanged.
The Secretary also said he believed that we had made a serious mistake in recognizing the USSR and that he would be much happier about a UN without Soviet membership.
- Source: Department of State, S/P Files: Lot 67 D 548, China, 1957–58. Secret. Drafted by Howard E. Furnas of the Policy Planning Staff on October 29. A note on the source text reads: “Only one copy made.” An attached note by Smith, January 20, 1959, reads as follows: “I talked to Mr. Herter today about the conversation I had with the Secretary back in October.”↩
- The attachment, not printed, an unsigned memorandum dated October 27, noted that in recent years the Policy Planning Staff had avoided the general subject of China policy, reflecting Dulles’ wishes as expressed to Smith’s predecessor Robert R. Bowie, and requested guidance as to whether it should engage in such a review.↩
- On June 28, 1957; for text, see Foreign Relations, 1955–1957, vol. III, pp. 558–566.↩
- Printed from a copy that bears this typed signature.↩