FO371-46253 — Page 108

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meret

With Sir George Gater's compliments. En han

any dear Ismay

25th August, 1945.

1945. 88

F5941/1177/0

Thank you for your letter of yesterday about the strangements for accepting a Japanese surrender at ho: rong

s I expect you will have heard, Mr. Kevin last niat authorised the despatch to Chungking of a telegram on the general lines of the draft which had previously been prepared by the Foreign Office.

s I expected, Er. Bevin fully shared the view of my secretary of state that we could not agree to the suggestion that the Commander of the British Force should accept the Japanese surrender as a delegate of

Chiung Fal shek. The principal reasons for this view are:-

that it is most important to us to avoid any appearance of receiving Hong Kong back from the Chinese; and

(b) that the suggestion that the British Force

Commander should act as the delegate of Chiang Kai Shek might well have opened the way to an attempt by Chiang Kai Shek to maintain that the British Force in

Hong Kong would be under his command (aS theatre Commander) even after the surrender..

Lince we spoke last night, you have probably seen the message from General MacArthur to the Japanese Imperial H.,, broadcast by the Manila radio, and

General Sir Hastings Ismay, 1.0.B., D.

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/General

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