393.11/1046
Memorandum by the Assistant Secretary of State (Johnson)
The Japanese Ambassador, in the course of a conversation today, stated that his Government had been approached by the British Government with a query as to whether they were prepared to send land forces to China for the purpose of protecting their citizens in the present crisis.
He said that his Government had replied to the British Government stating that the present crisis did not seem to require such a step, that Japanese destroyers were stationed at various points prepared to give any protection that an emergency might require, but that it had not seemed to the Japanese Government that the present emergency required anything further to be done. The Ambassador asked whether the British Government had made a similar approach to us.
I stated to the Ambassador that the British Government had not asked us if we would be prepared to send land forces to China. They made a general inquiry as to what steps might be taken to protect our citizens in China and that we had replied to this stating that the present crisis did not seem to require any unusual steps; that we already had American marines in China stationed at Shanghai and Peking and certain forces at Tientsin and that in addition the flagship of the Asiatic Fleet with certain destroyers had returned to China from Manila for the purpose of being available in case of an emergency.