893.24/1392
The First Secretary of the British Embassy (Hayter) to the Assistant Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Salisbury)
Washington, July 10,
1942.
Dear Mr. Salisbury: On June 23rd I gave you a copy of a telegram about a proposed supply route to China via Tibet.14 The Chinese Government have now approached us in regard to two other routes.
- 2.
- These routes are both air routes whose terminal point in China would be in the neighborhood of Kashgar. The first would go via Gilgit to a suitable point in India near Peshawar, and the second via Kabul to India or Iran. His Majesty’s Government were asked to grant facilities to survey the first route and to approach the Afghan Government in regard to the second.
- 3.
- Our Ambassador at Chungking is informing the Chinese Government that the first route is impracticable for aircraft other than stratosphere types, but that the Government of India are prepared to give all necessary facilities towards the establishment of a route from Northern India (Risalpur) to Sinkiang as soon as the requisite [Page 601] planes are available. A survey flight by an American plane which happened to be available in India at the time was arranged for June 23rd and 24th, but we have not yet heard whether this actually took place.
- 4.
- As regards the Afghan route, our Ambassador is informing the Chinese Government that as a flight from Sinkiang to Kabul would have to cross the Hindu Kush, this route offers no operational advantages over the direct route between India and Sinkiang, in regard to which facilities have already been offered. The Afghan National Assembly in November 1941 passed a resolution that “the use of land or air routes in or through Afghanistan must in no circumstances be conceded”, and the Afghan Government therefore seems certain to refuse the request for facilities. For these two reasons the Chinese Government are being informed that His Majesty’s Government do not propose to pursue further the question of the Afghan route.
- 5.
- It was thought that the above information might be of interest to the United States authorities.
Yours sincerely,
W. G. Hayter