TNAG-0027-FCO40-63-Relations-with-China-1968 — Page 146

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3.

Not unnaturally, he told me a good deal about the

part he personally had played in trying to help our people

and to galvanise support amongst the Corps to make repro-

sentations to the Chinese Kinistry of Foreign Affairs to

cause them to do something to protect our Kission. He

repeated the story of the lily-livered nature of the U.A.R.

Ambassador, expressing his particular disgust at the way in

which the U.A.R. Ambassador, after giving him his half-

hearted authorisation to act as doyen ad interim, had repudi-

ated this afterwards.

Monsieur Paye said that, amongst the foreign representa-

tives in Peking, the most stalwart in looking after our people

had been the Swede, Xr. Valquist, the Dutch, Dr. Pokkema, the

Dane, Kr. Belling and the Norwegian, Hr. Algaard.

5. We then discussed Sino-British relations. I explained

our policy in general terms to Monsieur Paye, which was,

briefly, to maintain diplomatic relations, to evacuate our

children and sick people as soon as possible and to

withdraw gradually the male members of the staff, trying to

replace some of them by other officers. I told him of the

progress we had made up to now.

Monsieur Paye asked if we

had yet received a reply to the Secretary of State's letter

to Ch'en Yi. I told him that we had not, but said that we

did not think that this initiative had been altogether without

effect in that the Chinese had not rejected the message, had

/not

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