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The Chinese Embassy to the Department of State 40

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In a telegram to the Ambassador dated November 11, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek asked whether the United States Government had received any definite information from the British Government in regard to China’s appeal for the aid of British air force in the defence of Yunnan Province. He expressed the earnest hope that as no time should be lost in the present emergency, the United States Government might again use its good influence to persuade the British Government to give a definite favorable reply at an early date.

In a telegram dated November 12, Dr. Quo Tai-chi, Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed the belief that China’s appeal for help must have received the favorable consideration of the American and British Governments as is evidenced by the announcement of the withdrawal of American marines,41 the references to China by the President in his address to the delegates to the Conference of the International Labor Organization42 and the speech of Prime Minister Churchill43 pledging support to the United States in the event of war with Japan, and by other utterances by other high officials of the United States Government on Armistice Day.44 All these pronouncements, in the opinion of Dr. Quo, constitute important warnings to Japan. He feels, however, that these utterances and the actions hitherto taken by the American and British Governments in support of China must be supplemented by further action in order effectively to achieve practical objectives. He fears, for example, should the Japanese start to invade Yunnan they might, first of all, concentrate their air strength on the destruction of the small American volunteer air unit which is now in Burma.

  1. Received in the Department on November 14.↩
  2. See telegram No. 259, November 6, 7 p.m., to the Ambassador in China, p. 578.↩
  3. November 6; Department of State Bulletin, November 8, 1941, p. 357.↩
  4. See telegram No. 1796, November 13, 3 p.m., from the Ambassador in Japan, Vol. iv, p. 587.↩
  5. For address on November 11 by the Under Secretary of State (Welles), see Department of State Bulletin, November 15, 1941, p. 391.↩