NANKING INCIDENT

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 14 August 1928, Page 9

NANKING INCIDENT

TEXT OF AGREEMENT REVISION OF TREATIES. BRITAIN- SYMPATHETIC. (British Official Wireless.) Received 1.50 p.m. to-day. RUGBY, Aug. 13. The text has been issued of letters exchanged between iSir Sidney Barton, .British Consul-General at Shanghai and Dr. Wang, the Nationalist Foreign Minister, at Nanking, containing the terms of the settlement of the Nanking incident of March 24, 1927. In a letter dated August 9 Dr. Wang conveyed in the .si nee rest manner profound" regret at the indignities and injuries inflicted upon the officials and representatives of the British Government for the loss of property sustained by the British Consulate and (the person!;),! injuries and material damage done to British residents. lie said that although it had been found after the investigation of the incident that it was entirely instigated by Communis ts prior to the establishment of the Nationalist Government. The Nanking Nationalist Government nevertheless accepted responsibility for it and would make restitution, nlsa it would undertake that .there would be no repetition. 'The Nationalist Government proposed for this purpose the institution of a Sino-British joint, commission to verify the actual injuries and damage and assess the amount of compensation. Replying, Sir Sydney Barton accepted the settlement.

Dr. Wang in a further Note expressed the hope that a now epoch would begin in the diplomatic, -relations between -China and Britain and suggested that further steps might bo taken for a revision of the existing treaties and a readjustment of outstanding questions on a basis of equality and mutual respect for territorial sovereignity. -Sir'Sydney Barton replied: “The British Government recognise the essential justice of the Chinese . claim to -treaty revision and in their declaration of December IS, 1926, and their seven proposals of January -28, 1927, they made their policy abundantly demand have taken such' practical steps as lay in their pbwer 'to carry it into effect. In order to give a further expression to the friendly and sympathetic attitude -Which they have always maintained to the Chinese, the British Government are prepared in due course to enter into negotiations with the Nationalist Government on the subject 'of treaty revision. The British Government do not intend to allow the Nanking incident to alter their previous attitude towards China and prefer to consider it as an incident bearing no relation to their treaty revision policy.”