U.S. Prepares For Renewed Friction Over Formosa

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27875, 25 January 1956, Page 13

U.S. Prepares For Renewed Friction Over Formosa

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

(Rec. 8 p.m? WASHINGTON, January 23. United States officials are preparing for the possibility of a new series of crises with Communist China over Formosa, a Reuter correspondent reported today. Well-informed sources, he said, were gloomy in their assessment of the chances of reaching peaceful settlements with the Chinese Communists during the ambassadors’ negotiations now being held in Geneva.

They expressed their deep concern that the new deadlock arising from Peking’s refusal to include the Chinese Nationalists’ island stronghold in a proposed declaration renouncing force, might be followed by new diplomatic and propaganda offensives against the United States linked with increased military “nuisance” activity in the Formosa Strait.

As Washington officials interpreted the situation, the danger of a worsening of Chinese-American relations was real, although ii the immediate future the Communists were not expected to launch a full-scale Formosa attack. Such an attack would automatically bring the full power of United States naval and air forces in the area to the defence of the Chinese Nationalists.

At least three courses of action were possible if the Communists decided to increase their pressure for a reversal of the United f tates position at the Geneva talks, the correspondent said. These were reported to be: (1) A refusal to release American civilians retained in China in spite of an agreement that all desiring repatriation should be permitted to leave.

This would enable the Communists to put the United States in the position of “sacrificing” its citizens by rejecting a “no force” pledge which Peking was trying to convince the world, particularly Asia, was a reasonable offer.

(2) A new anti-American diplomatic and propaganda campaign which

would signal a return’ to the bitter days of the Far East cold war. (3) Renewed and intensified military activity in the Formosa area, including heavier artillery barrages, “nuisance” shipping raids, and the deployment of mainland forces threatening an imminent invasion of Formosa or the neighbouring

Pescadores. Intelligence reports reaching Washington already have indicated heavy military construction on the mainland, the extension southward of the Communists’ coastal airfield system, and the regrouping of Communist armies facing Formosa itself. The State Department’s statement on Saturday reviewing the history of Chinese-American relations since the Geneva talks opened last August, clearly informed the Communists that the United States was not prepared to submit to the threat of war or to abandon its protection of Formosa as the price for agreement with Peking. Neither was the State Department prepared to consider the Communists’ demands for a Foreign Ministers’ meeting and an end to the trade embargo against the mainland until its civilians were released and the security of Formosa guaranteed. Officials said that Peking was wasting its breath in making these demands.