893.24/5–146: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the Embassy in China
58. On April 4, Messrs. Acheson and Clayton handed following aide-mémoire to Chinese Ambassador here:
“Department proposes negotiations begin at once in Washington on settlement war account between US and China including settlement lend-lease, surplus property, yuan advances, and other claims arising out of war.”
Important item for settlement lend-lease is inventory of lend-lease goods in hands of Chinese civilian agencies on V–J Day. On August 19 [18], 1945 Crowley, then FEA Administrator, asked in letter to Dr. Wei Tao-Ming, Chinese Supply Commission here,23 “that you furnish as soon as possible an inventory listing as of V–J Day all articles that have been transferred to your Government by the FEA on lend-lease terms and that have not been lost, destroyed, or consumed”. This letter also brought to attention Dr. Wong Wen-Hao, Chairman Chinese WPB, in letter from William Stanton, FEA representative Chungking, on November 27, 1945.
No reply and no inventory report received to date from Chinese.
Suggest urgently you tell Dr. Soong (and inform General Marshall) we want inventory report earliest possible but certainly by time of negotiations; if not made available by Chinese at that time, they must accept our estimates of probable value of inventory.