Office of the Historian

861.77/1902: Telegram

The Ambassador in Great Britain (Davis) to the Acting Secretary of State

London, December 28, 1920—6 p.m.
[Received 7:53 p.m.]

1745. I am informally advised by Foreign Office that British Ambassador [at] Washington has had recent conversation [with] Stevens concerning Chinese Eastern Railway and that they are of concurrent opinion:

(1)
That powers of Technical Board should be enlarged,
(a)
to assure increased efficiency in administration of railway,
(b)
to provide proper trusteeship for Russian interests,
(c)
as a factor in stabilization of the Far East.
(2)
That financial reorganization of the railway should be undertaken to which end the consortium could be immediately operative.
(3)
That united effort be made to secure payment of debts due the railway.

While for certain reasons British Government does not desire to put forward such proposals as (1) and (2), I infer that it would support them if they were advanced by us.

Davis