293. Telegram From the Secretary of State to the Embassy in the United Kingdom1
171. Eyes only Ambassador from Secretary. No distribution. For prompt action.
- 1.
- Please thank Macmillan for
his message about Nehru2
which I received on Sunday.3 Please further advise Macmillan that we request him to instruct British
Chargé Peiping to deliver on our behalf oral communication in
following sense:
“Your and our consular representatives at Geneva have been having intermittent talks during the past year regarding the repatriation of civilians who desire to return to their respective countries. The results have been disappointing to us. It has been suggested that it would aid in settling this matter if these talks were conducted on a more authoritative level, and that this could facilitate further discussion and settlement of certain other practical matters now at issue between the two of us. If you think well of this, we will designate a representative of ambassadorial rank to meet on the above basis with your representative of comparable rank at Geneva on a mutually agreeable date.”
- 2.
- Please further inform Macmillan that we assume it will be understood at Peiping, but if there is any doubt it should be made clear, that just as the consular representatives of the US and of Communist China have been meeting at Geneva without this implying diplomatic recognition, the same would obtain with respect to the meeting here suggested.
- 3.
- We do not plan to give any publicity to our communication to Peiping until after we have received Peiping’s reply and then only as mutually agreed. We hope that Peiping will treat matter in same manner.
- 4.
- Please further inform Macmillan that in drafting the foregoing we have tried to take into account the point made by him with reference to formula dealing with scope of possible conversations. We have omitted any express reference to the proviso in President’s letter to Nehru that “we could not deal with the rights of third parties in their absence”. We leave this thought implicit in the phrase “practical matters now at issue between the two of us” in the hope that this treatment will give a lesser impression of rigidity.
- 5.
- If Macmillan wishes to communicate with me further on this matter before giving instructions to his Chargé at Peiping this is acceptable to me and he may defer such instructions accordingly.