Office of the Historian

793.94/16566: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Japan (Grew)

Washington, April 12, 1941—2 p.m.

227. Kunming’s 8, April 9, 10 a.m.27 Please bring emphatically to the attention of the Japanese Foreign Office in such manner as you may deem appropriate the endangering of American lives by this indiscriminate bombing of Kunming. In so doing you may wish to point out that American citizens, including American officials, reside in that city for the purpose of carrying on legitimate activities and are entitled to reside there without danger of attack by Japanese air forces. You may care also to refer to the fact that the lives of American citizens continue to be jeopardized and American citizens continue to suffer loss from such bombings notwithstanding the fact that in most cases the Japanese authorities have been given detailed information with regard to the location of American property and the residences of American citizens.28

Sent to Tokyo via Shanghai. Repeated to Chungking, Peiping.

Hull
  1. Not printed.↩
  2. For note dated April 14 sent by the Embassy in Japan to the Japanese Foreign Office, see Foreign Relations, Japan, 1931–1941, vol. i, p. 710.↩