U.S. MEETING WITH CHINA

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27369, 7 June 1954, Page 9

U.S. MEETING WITH CHINA

“Direct Contact For First Time” (Hee. 9 p.m.) GENEVA, June 5. The first direct contact between the United States and the Communist China regime it refuses to recognise took place today in a friendly atmosphere. Two British diplomats who helped to arrange the surprise meeting were present. For half an hour the Americans and Communist Chinese discussed the detention of each other’s citizens. According to United States figures released in Geneva 122 Americans are ■ known or presumed to be in China, 83 of them in custody. The Chinese claim that 5000 of their citizens are forcibly detained in the United States. The Americans today were headed by Mr Alexis Johnson, Ambassador to Czechoslovakia, and the Chinese by Mr Wang Ping-nan, who was weil known to Americans in China in prewar days. The British representatives were Mi Humphrey Trevelyan, charge d’affaires in Peking, and Mr J. F. Ford, a senior Foreign Office official. Afterwards an official American statement emphasised that the meeting in no way implied “any measureof diplomatic recognition to the Red Chinese regime.” The statement added: “The United States Government has made the decision to authorise informal United States participation in this meeting because of its obligation to protect the welfare of its citizens.” Further talks will be held soon.