Memorandum, State Department Summary of Telegrams

19 OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE WASHINGTON DECLASSIFIED E.O. 12065, Sec. 3-402 State Dept. Guidelines, March 6, 1982 September 5, 1951 By DEB NLT, Date 9-585 SECRET SUMMARY OF TELEGRAMS CHINA After careful background study and considera- - tion we have instructed our missions in Stock- holm, Oslo, Copenhagen, The Hague, Bern, Djakarta, Rangoon, New Delhi, Karachi and Moscow to present a note to the respective Foreign Ministers in those capitals concerning the treatment of American nationals at the hands of the Chinese Communists. The note informs these governments (all of whom have representatives in Peiping) of the increasing concern our Government feels over the harsh and unjustified treatment by the Chinese Communist authorities of American nationals in China, more than twenty of whom are imprisoned in China, one of whom has died in prison, others are held incommunicado, and others de- nied the permission to leave China. The note states that in most cases the Chinese authorities have given no explanation of the arrests or any information concerning the welfare or whereabouts of the persons arrested. Access has been denied to legal counsel and to officials representing American interests in Communist China. The note asks the respective governments to present the foregoing facts to the central Chinese Com- munist authorities in Peiping, with the request that the latter provide in- - formation concerning these imprisoned Americans and take such steps as may be necessary to afford just and expeditious action on their cases. UNITED KINGDOM Our Counsellor of Embassy in London had long and separate conversations with Messrs. Gaitskell and Plowden on the British economic situation just before their departure for Washington last night. Gaitskell is pessimistic and worried about the deteriorating situation in terms of trade, balance of payments and the gold and dollar position, and feels that during this year there will be a total drain on gold and dollar reserves of between $800 million and one billion dollars. He said the principal factors contributing to this reversal were: high prices of raw materials, increased demands of the rest of the sterling area for dollars; increased sterling area purchases on the Con- tinent, resulting in a higher UK deficit in the European Payments Union, and loss of income from Persian oil. SECRET