Foreign Relations of the United States, 1951, Korea and China, Volume VII, Part 2

603.4193/5–1451

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Deputy Director of the Office of Chinese Affairs (Perkins)

confidential

[Washington,] May 14, 1951.

Subject: Publicity Regarding British Protest at Peiping on Detained Americans

Participants:	Mr. D. A. Greenhill, First Secretary, British Embassy
	Mr. T. L. Perkins, CA

Mr. Greenhill called today and read to me a message of April 30, 1951, received by the Foreign Office from Mr. Leo Lamb, their Chargé at Peiping, stating that the Chargé had failed to obtain an interview with lower-level officials of the Communist foreign office to protest the detention of United Kingdom, United States, Canadian and Australian nationals in China. Mr. Lamb said that an attempt to see higher officials during the May 1 celebration week would probably be fruitless. Therefore he was sending a memorandum, along the lines of the text already cleared with the Department of State,¹ to the Communist vice minister of foreign affairs on April 30.

In his message to the Foreign Office, Mr. Lamb suggested that at least a week be allowed for the possible return of the memorandum by the Communists without acknowledgment. This apparently has not occurred, but the British now plan, with the agreement of the U.S., Australia and Canada, to go forward with a public announcement about May 21 along the lines of the attached draft.² Mr. Lamb had suggested that the announcement might be either elicited by a question in the House of Commons or by an arranged question from press representatives to the Foreign Office; it is probable that the latter procedure will be followed, Mr. Greenhill indicated.

Mr. Greenhill said the Foreign Office had suggested that the United States, Canadian and Australian foreign affairs departments might wish to simultaneously make similar (although not the same) announcements. He said that the question was also being put before the Canadian and Australian Governments and that he would appreciate having our views as to the possible U.S. statement³ and the timing thereof. I told Mr. Greenhill that I would immediately check and mentioned that in our own announcement we would probably also like to note the situation of Americans who have long been denied exit permits.

1. See Clubb’s memorandum of conversation of April 10, p. 1625.
2. Not printed.
3. On May 21, the State Department issued a statement to the press expressing concern Over the imprisonment by Chinese Communist authorities of more than thirty American nationals, who had been denied access to legal counsel and to British officials, and over the denial of exit permits to some Americans who were trying to leave China. The statement noted that the British Chargé at Peking had made representations on April 30 on behalf of the Americans under arrest, as well as the United Kingdom, Canadian, and Australian nationals in that situation. For the text of the statement, see the Department of State Bulletin, June 11, 1951, p. 947.