893.113/1501
Statement by the Department of State
Exportation of Arms to China
In order to make clear the American Government’s position in reference to the exportation of arms from the United States to China, the Secretary of State announces that the exportation of arms and munitions of war from the United States to China has been governed and will continue to be governed by the President’s Proclamation of March 4, 1922, issued in pursuance of the Joint Resolution of Congress approved January 31, 1922.
Under the provisions of the Joint Resolution and of the President’s Proclamation it is, until otherwise ordered by the President or by Congress, unlawful to export to China “except under such limitations and exceptions as the President prescribes, any arms or munitions of war from any place in the United States”. By the provisions of the Proclamation the Secretary of State is authorized to prescribe the limitations and exceptions to the application of the Resolution.
In accordance with the authority thus conferred upon him, the Secretary of State announces that exportation of arms and munitions of war for the use of Chinese official authorities (including those of subdivisions) will be permitted in all cases with regard to which the firm or firms in the United States desiring to make shipment have submitted to the Department of State an application for license to export and with regard to which the Chinese Government has not through authorized channels made to the Department of State request that shipment be not permitted.
In connection with license to export, the Department of State provides a form for application for license and requires that applications be submitted to the Department on such forms fully filled out by the prospective exporters.
Export licenses will be required henceforth for the exportation to China of the following articles:
- 1.
- Arms and small arms of all kinds, other than those classed as toys, and spare parts thereof.
- 2.
- Guns, machine guns, and spare parts thereof, and gun grease.
- 3.
- Gun mountings and limbers; tanks, armored motor cars, armored trucks, and armor plate.
- 4.
- Shot, shells and cartridges for arms and small arms, both loaded and empty, and their component parts.
- 5.
- Projectiles, charges, cartridges, and grenades of all kinds and their component parts.
- 6.
- Machinery, such as cartridge-making machines, specially manufactured for use in making arms and ammunition.
- 7.
- Explosives as follows: Gun powders, smokeless powders, blasting powders, all forms of high explosives including dynamite, nitroglycerine and TNT, and blasting materials, fuses, detonators and other detonating agents.
- 8.
- Land and submarine mines, bombs and torpedoes.
- 9.
- Tear gas (C6H5COCH2C1) and other non-lethal gases and apparatus designed for the storage or the projection of such gases. (No licenses will be issued for lethal gases and flame acids or for apparatus designed for their storage or projection.)
- 10.
- Range finders and gun-sighting apparatus and their component parts.
- 11.
- Radio apparatus designed expressly for military use.
- 12.
- Military aircraft (including all types of aircraft fitted with armor, guns, machine guns, gun mounts, bomb dropping or other military devices) together with spare parts and equipment therefor.
- 13.
- Vessels of war of all kinds.
- 14.
- Other equipment for military purposes.