893.51/5–2347
Memorandum by the Director of the Office of Far Eastern Affairs (Vincent) to the Secretary of State
Dr. Tan Shao-hwa, Minister of the Chinese Embassy, called at his request at 12:30 p.m. May 22, 1947. He referred to a previous conversation with me64 regarding possible publicity out of Nanking on a Chinese request for American financial assistance and said that the Chinese Foreign Minister had directed the Embassy to inform us that the Chinese Government did not desire publicity on the matter at this time but that questions might be asked the Foreign Minister on the subject at the current session of the People’s Political Council. The Foreign Minister would reply that the Chinese Government was giving careful consideration to the matter of foreign financial assistance; that all parties now participating in the Chinese Government would be informed and consulted with regard to this matter; and that the Chinese Government was having informal exploratory discussions with American officials in regard to the matter of assistance. Dr. Tan asked that I convey this information to you.
I took advantage of Dr. Tan’s call to carry out your instructions regarding the desire of the Chinese Government, as stated in the memorandum submitted by Ambassador Koo under cover of his letter of May 13, that this Government indicate that the Chinese Government request for a loan of $1,000,000,000 is “acceptable in principle” to the United States Government. I told Dr. Tan that we were not in a position to make a commitment of the kind desired for reasons which I believed would be apparent to Ambassador Koo but that we were prepared to receive and give careful study to an informal memorandum from the Chinese Government, setting forth and supporting in detail the purposes for which it desired to obtain [Page 1125] credit. Dr. Tan stated that he would convey my exact language to the Ambassador as coming from the Secretary of State through me.
- Memorandum of May 14. not printed.↩