275. Memorandum From Alfred Jenkins of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Special Assistant (Rostow)1
SUBJECT
- Defiance of Peking
Our Consul General in Hong Kong reports his doubt “that the writ of any particular group in Peking necessarily extends beyond the handful of cities where so-called power seizures occurred last winter.”2 The reported detention of Vice Premier and Minister of Interior Hsieh Fu-chih in Wuhan from where he has just made his dramatic return after the personal intercession of Premier Chou En-Lai, is the most open defiance yet against central authority.
Both the People’s Daily and Peking Radio earlier today warned local authorities in Wuhan to surrender or face destruction by the Chinese Army. The interesting thing is that none of our sophisticated intelligence gathering means have given any indication that the Army is planning to do anything of the sort. Wuhan’s defiance has gone on long enough now for there to be evidence of planned military action against the city, if the threat to Peking’s authority is to be met with force. It is very possible that the Mao-Lin faction is unsure whether the Army would act.
This is the first clear test case of serious defiance on the part of top local authorities, prompting a threat of military action by Peking. There are at least seven other Yangtze Valley provinces which will surely watch the outcome of this test. If Peking is unable to bring this situation under control, other local authorities will decide that it is safe to be defiant, and that could mean the beginning of the end for the Mao-Lin combine.
Meanwhile, there is a rising tide of reports from all over the country indicating that the disorder is getting worse. One is tempted, in fact, to believe that Peking’s indignant listing of Liu Shao-chi’s erroneous policies has helped increasing numbers of the populace to realize that they prefer Liu’s policies to Mao’s, and are prepared actively to support anti-Mao forces.
The battle is by no means over but the downward trend in Mao-Lin fortunes, which I believe has been steady if slow since last summer, has in the past week accelerated markedly.
- Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, China, Vol. X. Top Secret. A copy was sent to Jorden. Rostow sent the memorandum to the President with a covering note of the same date; a handwritten “L” on the note indicates that it was seen by the President.↩
- Telegram 554 from Hong Kong, July 26. (Department of State, Central Files, POL CHICOM)↩