Office of the Historian

794A.5/8–350: Telegram

The Chargé in China (Strong) to the Secretary of State

top secret
Taipei, August 3, 1950—3 p. m.

181. For Department use only. No distribution. Deptel 98, August 11 received after transmission mytel 178 today.2 Apart from meeting MacArthur group on arrival at airfield I had no contact, nor did attachés other than as reported my reftel.

Meeting with attachés this morning brought out but little additional information culled from US military personnel which arrived here connections stationing of jets. Major General Turner,3 commander of jet fighters on Okinawa here now with two plane loads of personnel. CAF has guarantee provide quarters for air, communications and command personnel at Hsinchu and Tainan airfield (where jets to be stationed). Jets will be commanded by USAF until Chinese Communist invasion at which time will come under operational command of Seventh Fleet.

Admiral Cooke was included in all MacArthur conferences. Attachés state Cooke’s group of American advisers trying to use them as channel [Page 413] of communications with Seventh Fleet and MacArthur and as sources of information, and seem to be, assuming special position.4

Minister National Defense already engaged in requisitioning or buying houses for USAF personnel to stay in Taipei. In contrast, have made little progress with Foreign Office on housing for additional attachés. Plan see Foreign Minister Yeh with Jarrett this afternoon and point out this discrepancy.

Shall report any additional details as they become known.

Strong
  1. See footnote 1 to telegram 180 to Tokyo, August 1, p. 405.↩
  2. Dated August 3, p. 410.↩
  3. Maj. Gen. Howard M. Turner, Commander, 13th Air Force, with headquarters at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines.↩

  4. On August 8, in telegram JCS 88248, the Joint Chiefs of Staff advised General MacArthur of their desire that all United States military personnel on Formosa in liaison with the Chinese Government cooperate closely with the Senior Military Attaché. The message concluded:

    “The retired Naval and Marine officers employed by ‘Commerce International China’ are on Formosa without the approval of the Navy Department. They have not been authorized to accept employment with the Chinese Government. They shall not be permitted to act as intermediaries between the armed forces of the United States and the Chinese Government or its armed forces.” (794A.00/8–850)

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