On China's Diplomatic Efforts For Lend-lease Assistance From America During The Anti-Japanese War

With the situation of the anti-Japanese war changing, Chiang Kai-shek realizes that it is impossible for all of them to aid China but the USA is the focus of external assistance of China for the reason that both England and the Soviet Union are in trouble. Chiang Kai-shek decides to expand diplomacy with the U.S. in hope of getting American aid and he sets Tse-ven Soong as his personal representative to American with the mission of promoting diplomatic move in the USA and seeking large scale assistance for China's anti-Japanese war. During the initial stage of the war of resistance, the national government gets aid loans from the U.S. for several times which contribute greatly to enhance China's military forces and morale. But by the end of 1940, America's early small-scale loans are no longer enough to maintain the great need of anti-Japanese war in China. Besides, during this time, Chinese economy nearly comes to completely collapse, money is almost running out. China can not provide tung oil, tungsten, tin and other native products or minerals as mortgage to obtain loans from the U.S. Therefore, China's War of Resistance is in urgent need for more timely and effective assistance.It is not a unique instance, but has its counterpart. By the end of 1940, the United Kingdom faced a very similar situation with China, it is also an urgent need for the U.K. to obtain more large-scale assistance from the U.S., Britain's national treasury and foreign exchange and gold reserves have been nearly depleted, and there is lack of required force to continue paying the huge funds for importing U.S. weapons. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt realizes there is an extremely close tie between the British resistance to German aggression and national interests and security of the United States. Therefore, Franklin D. Roosevelt decides to make a major adjustment of the assistance policy for the United Kingdom by giving up the "cash and carry" policy and planning to provide large scale of military and economic assistance in the form of land and lease. Roosevelt immediately put forward the "lend-lease Program" proposed to be discussed by the Congress. When the U.S. government and Congress begin to prepare and debate on the policy assisting anti-fascist countries, the Chongqing government headed by Chiang Kai-shek acutely aware that it is an important opportunity for China, Chiang Kai-shek has been immediately directed Tse-ven Soong and the Chinese embassy in the United States to carry out diplomatic activities actively with the hope that China can be treated in the same way as the United Kingdom as the first several countries to be provided with lend and lease assistance.After passing the "lend-lease Program" in the United States, China sets Guo Taiqi as an ambassador to visit the United States. Factually, he is set for the task of asking the United States to issue a formal lend-lease statement as soon as possible. He talks with officials of the United States authorities, and makes a public speech urging the U.S. to step up assistance to China. Immediately, the U.S. President makes a public statement and decides to implement the loan aid to China.During the war, the U.S. places the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union in a priority status, while China has always been relegated to a second place. National Government and the Chiang Kai-shek think that China's absence in the Munitions Allocation Committee which is in charge of distributing military goods is the main reason. Although they apply to attend Munitions Allocation Committee for many times, they are refused at last. Chiang Kai-shek attempts to contract with the United States for many times to seek more aids and he sends his wife May-ling Soong to visit America, who delivers speeches in America Congress and in the public to publicize China's resistance war and arouses great echo in the U.S. political circles, media and even in the common people. The lend-lease contradictions which also embody in conflicts between Chiang Kai-shek and Stilwell become worse after China's loss in the spring of 1944. Stilwell was recalled to the United States in October 1944, when the situation of the Second World War has been reversed, all of which smooth the dispute and conflict about lend-lease materials between the U.S. and China.The fundamental divergence on strategic issue between the U.S. and China is the first reason accounts for all of the lend-lease conflicts and disputes. It is reasonable for China's quest that the allies should defeat Japan first and the U.S. should assist China which is in the most urgent needs. However, the American president Roosevelt holds an opposite opinion. Therefore, during a long time before the outbreak of the Pacific War the America's motivation of assisting China is to moderate the Japanese pressure to the American allies in the Pacific Ocean by restraining multiple Japan military forces in China's battlefield. In addition, Chiang Kai-shek's passive attitude in resistance in order to preserve power, his tension relationship with Stilwell, influence of Communist Party of China and Sino-US conflicts about operations in Myanmar are among the important factors which aggregate the Sino-US contradictions.The Chinese government continues to express their dissatisfaction and difficulties of resistance during war by various means and attempts to resolve these problems through active diplomatic activities, but achieves little success on the whole. Until the last stage of the war in the end of 1944, with the smoothing situation and improvement of the U.S. military materials production, the Sino-US contradictions based on the lend-lease conflicts are to be solved completely. After Weidemann visiting China, the worldwide anti-fascist struggle is certain to win. From then on, the United States begins to measure China for the reason of post-war political interests and preserves China's strength consciously in order to obtain interests in Asia and restrain the Soviet Union by transporting large-quantities of lend-lease military materials to China. The Sino-US disputes and conflicts on lend-lease assistance to China come to a conclusion.