893.00/14871: Telegram
The Ambassador in China (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received 10:35 p.m.]
971. Reference Embassy’s 954, August 19, 1 p.m. Responsible Russian official, discussing recent China-Sinkiang developments with Vincent, commented as follows:
Chungking Government officials had long been needlessly suspicious of Russian relations with Sinkiang and that he therefore welcomed indications that the Sinkiang Government was drawing closer to Chungking, a development which he hoped would place the Russian position in proper perspective. Russia was interested in a continuation of its trade relations with Sinkiang (relations which are mutually beneficial and which cannot rationally be replaced by relations with China) and in the eventual development of Sinkiang resources with Russian assistance if desired (so far Russia has been of assistance only in limited development of oil [apparent omission] good humor [sic], that although China seemed to be taking advantage of a “military [Page 232] situation” to further its interests in Sinkiang, Russia did not object and hoped that China would realize that fears of Sinkiang becoming a member of the USSR would disappear.
Insofar as Russia was concerned, Sinkiang was an area having a long common boundary with Russia with which Russia desired to remain on neighborly terms.
The foregoing should be accepted with reservation in the light of past 10 years as a conservative statement in sense that it may represent a desire to rationalize an unwelcome but unavoidable development but Embassy nevertheless gains impression that Russians are not in fact especially concerned over probable new turn of events in Sinkiang.