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BE

WRITTEN

IN

THIS

MARGIN.

Registry

No.F 4858/1147/G

Page 263

FOREIGN OFFICE, S.W.1.

August, 1945.

Despatched

M.

269

SECRET

Draft.

Washington

Telegram

No.

Date.

Cypher. O.T.P.

Special Political Distribution

Repeat to Chunging

No.

Mr. Dening, Kandy. NO.

At present Hong Kong is in the operational

sphere of Chiang Kai-shek. We have to be prepared

therefore for the contingency of the Colony being

Liberated by Chinese Forces.

2.

It is in that event important that we should

be able to assume the administration of this

British Colony as soon as the military situation

allows, and obtain an agreement that from the

butset of any initial period of military

administration our Civil Affairs policies should

be accepted and that the civil Affairs

administration should be conducted by British

personnel.

B. At present we have no understanding with the

Chinese Government (as we have with the U.S..

Goverment under paragraph 6 of the Charter of

the Combined Civil Affairs Committee) in respect

of their acceptance of British Civil Affairs

policies in any British territory included in.

their operational sphere. An embarrassing

situation may therefore arise in the even of

Hong Kong being liberated by Chinese Forces unless

there is clear agreement with Chiang Kai-shek, in

advance, as to our role in the administration of

Hong Kong.

General Wedemeyer's position as Chief of

Staff to the Generalissimo is such that any

agreement of this nature and the measures

hecessary to implement it, would in practice

require/

NOTHING

TO

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