Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XXX, China

181. Telegram From the Embassy in Poland to the Department of State¹

Warsaw, September 9, 1966, 0944Z.

568. 1. I am aware of polemic aspects of ChiCom letter² but am reluctant go to extent of formal rejection and return of their reply. Virtually all our meetings with Chinese here in Warsaw and earlier in Geneva have been conducted in atmosphere of polemics and invective which under any normal circumstances would be grounds for U.S. representative to walk out of meetings. ChiCom opening statement in meeting Sept. 7 filled with attacks and slanders against U.S. which, if made to me by Polish Govt official would be totally unacceptable and grounds for my instant protest.

2. We have accepted this in past, however, as one aspect of dealing with ChiComs in this admittedly extraordinary, semi-diplomatic contact. So long as general purpose of contact continues useful, I am prepared to accept ChiCom polemics as part of the game.

3. ChiCom letter, it seems to me, falls within same “extraordinary” character. What we would and could not accept from country with which we have diplomatic relations does not and should not necessarily carry over into this bizarre U.S.-ChiCom link here.

4. I would also suggest possibility that in their strange “tit for tat” approach to diplomacy if we reject their letter, ChiComs might decide return our letter to them on Gemini shot which handed to them yesterday.³ As you aware, they have in past accepted our notifications and with this, at least moral obligation to accept responsibility for return of astronauts in case of emergency. I would be reluctant to risk precipitating possible rejection of our letter of notification, and I have no doubt they could fabricate grounds for doing so, by returning their letter on disarmament at present time.

5. I therefore strongly urge Dept reconsider instruction to return ChiCom letter.⁴

Gronouski

1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, POL CHICOM-US. Confidential; Immediate; Limdis. Repeated to Hong Kong and Taipei and passed to the White House and USIA.
2. Reference is to the letter cited in footnote 6, Document 180. It called the U.S. proposal a “sheer swindle” aimed at covering up “crimes of aggression.” Telegram 43393 to Warsaw, September 8, stated that its language was so abusive as to be unacceptable and instructed the Embassy to return it with the oral explanation that it was unacceptable because it used offensive language at variance with universally accepted diplomatic norms. (Department of State, Central Files, POL CHICOM-US)
3. Airgram A–197 from Warsaw, September 8, reported that the Embassy had transmitted a news release with a covering letter to the Chinese Embassy. It noted that no discussion had ever been held with the Chinese on the question of what would happen if a U.S. space flight landed for any reason in Chinese Communist territory, but that the Chinese had been informed in advance of each manned space shot that had overflown mainland China. (Ibid., SP 1 US)
4. Telegram 44217 to Warsaw, September 9, withdrew the instructions. (Ibid., POL CHICOM-US)