CO129-575-15 Traffic of arms to China 24-1-1939 - 4-12-1939 — Page 52

In any further communication on this subject, please quote

No.

F 12522/28/10.

and address--

not to any person by name

but to-

"The Under-Secretary of State,"

Foreign Office,

London, S.W.1.

Dupl litter

only

49

210.

Foreign Office.

S.W.1.

15th December,1939.

CONFIDENTIAL

195

Sir,

With reference to Colonial Office letter No.53548/39 of

the 8th December, I am directed by Viscount Halifax to state

that he considers it desirable that in the circumstances the

Government of Hong Kong should comply with the Japanese

Consul-General's request for permission to purchase a small

quantity of arms in the colony for the use of the Japanese

police force at Canton. In his opinion the grant of such

permission might help to improve relations between the Japanese

authorities at Canton and the Government of Hong Kong.

2. While, however, there is no objection to this transaction

on legal grounds, Lord Halifax trusts that the arms which the

Japanese Consul-General may be allowed to purchase will be

the property of private firms rather than of His Majesty's

Government, since otherwise some criticism might be expected

from Chinese sources and since, despite the absence of a declared

state of war in China, the Government of Hong Kong have always

adhered to a strictly neutral attitude in the conflict between

China and Japan.

3.

With regard to the request in the second paragraph of

Colonial Office letter under reference, Lord Halifax considers that

the Governor of Hong Kong's telegram may not refer to any

telegrams which he received from Tokyo or Shanghai, but that the reference at the beginning of His Excellency's telegram

may indicate that it was repeated to His Majesty's Ambassador

at/

The Under-Secretary of State,

Colonial Office.