CO129-580-1 Sino-Japanese War- handing over of suspected terrorists to Japanese authorities 1-5-1939 - 24-8-1939 — Page 82

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.]

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From UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

Decypher. Sir R. Lindsay (Washington).

13th June, 1939.

D.

6.05 p.m.

13th June, 1939.

R.

9.30 a.m.

14th June, 1939.

No. 258.

IMMEDIATE.

63

Your telegram No. 262.

Representations were made to State Department this morning and the following reply has now been received begins: On June 12th American Consul-General at Tientsin reported to Department that he had used and would continue to use his good offices, whenever opportunity should offer, towards effecting a settlement of dispute between British and Japanese, without taking sides in the dispute, the basis of attitude to action of the Consul-General being primarily the desire that inconveniences and losses to American interests be

averted or at least ameliorated. The Consul-General further

reported that it was his conviction that nothing could be accomplished at Tientsin at the present time in the way of settling difficulties existing there. The Department is today sending a telegram to the Consul-General in which approval is given of the action and attitude of the Consul-General. The Department is

instructing the Consul-General to continue to hold himself in

readiness informally to use his good offices, if and when

appropriate British and Japanese officials at Tientsin make an approach to him, with a view to bringing representatives of British and Japanese into friendly discussions having the purpose of finding for question at issue some peaceful adjustment. The Department is further instructing the Consul-General

that