893.00/6–2345: Telegram
The Ambassador in China (Hurley) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 23—2:20 p.m.]
1038. The Sixth Kuomintang Congress concluded May 26 later [after?] having adopted measures reported to you in paragraph 1 to 5, inclusive, my 991, 9 a.m., June 16. Pursuant thereto a committee comprised of the following members was appointed by the Government to negotiate with the Communists. (It may be that all of the members appointed will not serve. In that event, substitute members will be appointed.) A short statement of background for each of the members of the committee was presented to us by the Government:
Huang Yen-pei, province Kiangsu, member Democratic League—educationalist—President of Educational Society.
Fu Sze-nien, province Shantung—Independent—scholar of Chinese history and philosophy—director of the Institute of Philology and History of the Academia Sinica.
Wang Yun-wu, province Kwangtung—Independent—director of the largest publishing house in China, The Commercial Press.
Lo Kwei, province Kiangsu—Independent—former Governor of Kiangsu.
[Page 417]Chang Po-chun, province Anhwei, member Democratic League—thought to be former member Communist Party—very close to Communists.
Tso Shung-sheng, province Hunan, member Democratic League—Secretary General of Democratic League—prominent member Young China Party.
Tsu Fu-chang, province Chekiang, old member of Kuomintang—practically an Independent—Parliamentarian since beginning of Republic.
The Government thereupon sent a message to Mao Tse-tung, chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, and Chou En-lai, vice chairman, offering to have this committee negotiate with representatives of the Communist Party for a unification of the armed forces of China for the purpose of defeating Japan. The Government also has agreed to the recognition of the Communists as a political party in China but declines to recognize them as an armed belligerent or insurrectionary group. The Communists did not immediately answer but have been putting forth considerable propaganda, including a somewhat defiant broadcast from Yenan on June 20th (it is assumed Department has received text from OWI), saying among other things that the Chinese Communist Party would not participate in either the People’s Political Council meeting to be held in Chungking beginning July 7th or the November assembly. (We did not comment on that broadcast when made for the reason that we were already in possession of information to the effect that the Communists would agree to negotiate with the National Government through the committee above named.) Yesterday the Government received a reply from Mao Tze-tung and Chou En-lai which indicates that they will resume negotiations with the Government and have asked the committee to come to Yenan for the purpose of making a complete canvass of the possibility of agreement between the Chinese Communist Party and the National Government.
Although the Communist Party of China has unquestionably been endeavoring recently to bring about clashes between the Communist troops and those of the Government (and has succeeded in causing some clashes, the importance of which has been exaggerated in some quarters), the logic of events seems now to be convincing the Communists that their best interests as a political party may be served by coming to an agreement with National Government rather than attempting to destroy it.
The decision to resume negotiations does not mean that the conflict had been solved. The end is not yet in sight but the situation seems definitely improved.
Sent to Department; repeated to Moscow.