CO129-563-17 Sino-Japanese War- attacks on shipping. For extracted photographs see CN 3-12 27-9-1937 - 17-1-1938 — Page 129

[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be

returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]

142

(F 10963/130/10)

To JP.N.

Code telegram to Sir R. Craigie (Tokyo)

Foreign Office, 21st December 1937, 6.00 p.m.

No. 581 (R).

IMPORTANT.

I shall be glad if you will at once address a note

to the Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs in the

· following terms:-

I have the honour, upon instructions from His

Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, to bring to Your Excellency's notice the fact that a

serious violation of the territorial waters and of the

territory itself of the British Colony of Hongkong was

committed on the 11th December by Japanese naval forces. At about 2.30 p.m. on that day, a revenue protection vessel

of the Chinese Maritime Customs, when within British terri-

torial waters off Black Point, was fired at by a Japanese destroyer from a position just outside territorial waters;

the number of the destroyer is unknown. The vessel turned

away from the destroyer to make for Urmston Roads and was

shortly afterwards struck by one ricochet. She was then

run aground approximately half a mile north-east of Black

Point, that is, on British territory, and abandoned.

According to the account which has been furnished to the

water police authorities of the Colony, the Japanese destroyer subsequently entered British territorial waters

and, when at about one and a quarter miles from the shore,

lowered two motor-boats and towed the Customs vessel off.

The