793.94/4549: Telegram
The Consul at Geneva (Gilbert) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 3—3:03 p.m.]
98. The Secretary General has circulated the following text of a letter dated March 2nd from Yen to Boncour:
“As I have already notified the Council, my Government accepted on February 29 the armistice proposals resulting from an exchange of views on February 28th between the representatives of the two parties in the presence of Admiral Kelly on board the British flagship. These proposals, as stated by the British representatives on the Council on February 29th, were based on the principle of mutual simultaneous evacuation.
Since these proposals were forwarded for the consideration of the Chinese and Japanese Governments, the Japanese Government has made no reply but landed strong reenforcements in the International Settlement of Shanghai and launched an offensive on a larger scale. This was done in spite of the announcement that the Japanese Government had accepted the proposals made by the President of the Council on February 29 for the cessation of hostilities and restoration of peace in the Shanghai area.
In spite of these developments which throw serious doubt on the sincerity of the Japanese Government’s acceptance of the Council’s proposal I have the honor to state that my Government is as always ready to accept an armistice based on the principles outlined above. If this armistice is accepted and carried out the Chinese Government is further prepared to accept the proposal which Your Excellency made at the Council meeting on February 29th and to participate in the conference at Shanghai recognizing that the safety of the International Settlement at Shanghai and the French Concession is essential to the maintenance of peace in and around Shanghai and on the understanding that this conference is concerned only with the restoration of peace in Shanghai and that all questions arising out of the [Page 501] Sino-Japanese conflict in any part of China will be settled in accordance with the procedure invoked by China before the League.
It is, of course, understood that participation in this conference is subject to agreement between participating governments as to its agenda.”