293.1122/8–653
No. 134
The Deputy Assistant Secretary of
State for Far Eastern Affairs (Johnson) to the Administrator of the
Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs (McLeod)
Subject:
- American Civilians Under Detention in Communist China
With reference to your memorandum of July 28, 1953, entitled “American Citizens Remaining in China,”1 the Department has had under consideration at various times during the past two years the possibility of including the plight of Americans held in Communist China in the armistice negotiations in Korea. However, the issue was not relevant to the armistice negotiations, and if introduced would have given the Communists a plausible excuse to raise a number of extraneous issues. It was believed that the interjection of this subject into the armistice talks might induce the Chinese Communists to further intransigence, possibly put a stop to the sporadic release of American civilians by the Chinese Communists—almost four hundred Americans were released while the negotiations were in progress—might make hostages of the Americans in the event no armistice could be reached, and might well prolong the armistice negotiations.
The question of introducing this subject at the impending Political Conference will continue under review. At the present time, the tentative position of the United States is that, in the first instance, the agenda of the Conference should be limited to Korean questions. The possibility is open that the Conference might agree to consider other questions following a successful solution of the basic Korean problem. The Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs has under consideration the advisability of instructing the United States delegation to the Political Conference at its discretion to bring the subject up if the climate at the Conference develops in such a way that this would seem to be a promising move. The final plans for the Conference and the United States’ position with respect thereto have not been completed. Much depends not only on the situation as it develops at the Conference but also upon the views and positions of the several conferees and their Governments.
British and other foreign diplomats in Peiping have expressed the opinion that informal approaches to individual Chinese Communist [Page 244] officials appear to have better prospects of success than do strong, formal notes to the Chinese Communist “Foreign Office”.
In the meantime, Americans continue to be released from Communist China from time to time. Fathers Palm and Gatz, who were seized in the Communist round-up in Shanghai in June, recently arrived in Hong Kong. Bishop Cote, who had been imprisoned since 1951, also has just arrived in Hong Kong.
- McLeod’s memorandum to Assistant Secretary Robertson, attached to the source text, suggested that the situation of U.S. citizens remaining in China might be included on the agenda of the anticipated political conference on Korea.↩