Chapter 16 Chapter 15 Truman Hopes MacArthur Will Not Make the United States Go to War with Mao Zedong

Truman hoped that MacArthur would not cause the United States to go to war with Mao Zedong, but also to find out what Mao made to Chiang Kai-shek. (Taipei-Tokyo, July-August 1950) At that time, Taipei Songshan Airport was very simple. The terminal building consisted of a few short houses, the runway was not wide, and the airport was relatively deserted. It was rare that there were bustling and whistling flights taking off and landing. .At noon on July 31, 1950, the atmosphere at the airport was very different.A large group of gendarmerie motorcycles parked in front of the airport.More than a dozen shiny concierge cars lined up neatly in front of the airport.The staff of the Protocol Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were very busy.Leading reporters from various newspapers in Taiwan crowded around the airport.Soon, Premier Chen Cheng, Taiwan's military dignitaries, Defense Minister Zhou Zhirou, Commander of the Armed Forces Gui Yongqing, Wang Quanming, Sun Liren, etc. all arrived one after another.The airport is shining brightly.Eyewitnesses felt that this was the grandest and most solemn welcoming event since the Republic of China government moved to Taiwan at the end of 1949.

Who is going to visit Taipei? After some time, even Chiang Kai-shek's car arrived.After Chiang Kai-shek got off the car, he went to the airport VIP room to rest and wait.Other important civil and military officials stood by the airport, waiting for the arrival of the distinguished guests. A reporter couldn't help asking curiously.The staff of the Protocol Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs only replied mysteriously that a group of senior US military officials from Tokyo were about to arrive.The reporters were even more nervous when they heard this, and had a premonition that there might be big news happening.

At exactly one o'clock in the afternoon, an American special plane roared down and landed. Walking down the gangway was an old American general with a straight back, wearing a faded old military cap, holding the famous cornstalk pipe in his hand, and waving his hands towards the welcoming crowd. He is the famous Marshal MacArthur, the commander-in-chief of the US Far East Army stationed in Japan and the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the coalition forces on the Korean battlefield.He took his special plane "Bataan".The first person to greet him under the wing was Chen Cheng.He and Chen Cheng hugged each other, and then introduced his entourage.Soon, Chiang Kai-shek came out of the VIP room, came under the wing and shook hands with MacArthur and hugged him.

That day, MacArthur came with him, including his chief of staff Yarmo, commander of the Far East Fleet Zhuo Yi, commander of the Sixth Fleet Shi Shubo, commander of the Far East Air Force Stratmena, etc., and there were about 50 people in all. .There were as many as three transport planes that landed successively.As early as 9:00 a.m. that day, another transport plane carrying the communications control platform had already arrived in Taipei.The impression given is: MacArthur has moved his Tokyo headquarters to Taipei at once. MacArthur's visit to Taiwan this time did not make much publicity but was kept secret in advance, which has its own special reasons.This is where he and President Truman have serious differences in their treatment of the Chiang Kai-shek regime in Taiwan.After Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan from the mainland, the Truman administration managed to maintain an estranged relationship with the Nationalist government.At the National Security Conference on December 29, 1949, Truman decided not to provide material aid to Taiwan and to "stand by" while the Communists tried to attack the island.

The president's decision made MacArthur very dissatisfied.He saw Taiwan as a necessary factor in the defense of Japan, a lesson he had learned from the Pacific War; he admired Chiang Kai-shek and was no longer willing to sit back and let the Communists gain more ground in Asia.MacArthur believes that Taiwan is an "unsinkable aircraft carrier", and the United States will have endless troubles if it loses it. When the Korean War broke out, although Truman changed his policy toward Taiwan, he adopted a cautious two-track route.On June 28, he authorized MacArthur to use military instructions in North Korea, and also ordered the Seventh Fleet to protect Taiwan from Communist attacks.But the same order also required the Seventh Fleet to prevent Chiang Kai-shek from attacking the mainland.Mao Zedong believed that the actions of the U.S. Seventh Fleet in the Taiwan Strait trampled on China's sovereignty and completely threatened the new mainland China.But MacArthur believed that Truman's order "too cheap" for the Chinese Communists, so that they do not need to muster a large army across Taiwan to prevent Chiang Kai-shek's attack.

MacArthur asked not to publish this policy of the United States, so that Mao Zedong could not be sure. But MacArthur supported Truman's other decision about Chiang Kai-shek, refusing to send troops to Korea to fight against Chiang Kai-shek.MacArthur believed that Chiang Kai-shek's troops would fight no better in Korea than they had on the mainland. Truman demanded that any expedient action concerning Taiwan must not affect long-term policy.Nevertheless, Truman still worried that Mao Zedong would order an attack on Taiwan at any time.In late July, intelligence reports said that a Chinese force of about 200,000 men had assembled in Zhejiang and Fujian, across from Taiwan. Despite the protection of the American fleet, Truman feared that Mao Zedong's forces would be able to triumph in the offensive.On July 28, Secretary of Defense Johnson and the Joint Chiefs of Staff advocated allowing Chiang Kai-shek to mine the waters between Taiwan and the mainland and to bomb areas where Communist troops were staging.Secretary of State Acheson refuted these two opinions, calling them "nonsense."Truman finally decided to send a survey team to Taiwan to draw up a concrete plan to increase military aid.

MacArthur strongly advocated allowing Chiang Kai-shek to mine and bomb the mainland.He had long expressed his willingness to visit Taiwan and conduct some investigations, but was rejected by President Truman.Now that Truman decided to send an investigation team to Taiwan, MacArthur took this opportunity to personally go to Taiwan to inspect the defense.Taking into account the President's opinion, the Joint Chiefs of Staff suggested that MacArthur consider sending another senior officer. MacArthur still set off on his own.In order not to let the State Department know about his visit to Taiwan, he did not let Siebold, a senior US diplomat in Tokyo, accompany him to Taipei.Afterwards, Secretary of State Acheson suspected that he was playing tricks.

At the airport, there is no salute, no guard of honor, no red carpet, or else, it is tantamount to welcoming the head of state.It shows that Chiang Kai-shek attaches great importance to MacArthur's visit. When MacArthur was accompanied by Chiang Kai-shek, he walked out of the airport and got into Chiang Kai-shek's presidential car. Chiang's wife, Soong Meiling, was already waiting in the car and interpreting for Mai and Chiang. MacArthur and Chiang Kai-shek never met, but after getting into the car, MacArthur said to Wei Meiling: "Your husband is my old partner in the last war."

Chiang Kai-shek said: "I heard that in the first few days of the war, you braved the hail of bullets and flew to the forefront of Seoul in person?" MacArthur laughed: "My plane was almost shot down by Stalin's plane. Haha, a general who dares not take risks is not a good general. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to get the first-hand situation on the front line in Seoul." That was a month ago, on June 29, MacArthur decided to fly to the front line of North Korea to inspect the battlefield in view of the fact that the various news that poured into the Tokyo headquarters did not directly reflect the battle situation.This day was cloudy, windy and rainy, and the weather was very bad. The driver suggested to postpone it for a day.MacArthur disagreed and wanted to set off immediately.

When his "Bataan" plane flew over North Korea, the radio reported that Suwon Airport in the south of Seoul was violently strafed.When the plane was descending, a Soviet-made Yak propeller fighter swooped down, trying to rush into the formation of four escorting fighter jets from the United States.An escorting Mustang fighter jet went up to meet them.Before the plane landed, North Korean fighter jets hit two American transport planes at Suwon Airport, billowing thick smoke into the sky. The "Bataan" passed through the thick smoke and slid on the runway more than ten meters away from a burning C-54 transport plane. The runway was full of bomb craters, and the "Bataan" bumped violently.

He stepped out of the landline and descended to the airport's asphalt runway with great vigor.Li Chengwan rushed forward to greet him.South Korea's chief of staff and the US general in charge of South Korea reported the situation to him at the airport.He was extremely impatient: "Let's go to the front line to see." The front line is more than ten kilometers away, and it is unpredictable. The defense force will be defeated at any time. The owner said it was too dangerous.MacArthur insisted on going. So, MacArthur took a dilapidated black Dodge, his assistants and reporters took several jeeps, and walked through the torrent of defeated and fleeing troops.MacArthur was sitting in the car with a cornstalk pipe clenched in his mouth.When the convoy came to the bank of the Han River, they saw a sea of ​​flames in the opposite side of Seoul, and black gunpowder smoke rose from the sky above the buildings; the sky echoed with the screeching sound of ricochets, and North Korean mortar shells exploded dully in the distance.Regardless of the advice, he insisted on abandoning his car and climbing up the hill closer to the Han River.He observed on the hill for an hour.He put down the binoculars, pointed at the remaining railway bridge on the Han River, and said a few words: "Blow it up." On the way back to Suwon, the convoy was caught up by North Korean Yak fighter jets.The vehicles all got into the bushes, and everyone except MacArthur looked for places to hide.MacArthur is still sitting in the Dodge car, Ren Jacques hovering overhead.MacArthur left a deep impression on witnesses who were not afraid of danger.However, other journalists commented that it was hardly a brave move: a senior commander risked his life just to put on a stunning pose. In Chiang Kai-shek’s car, MacArthur talked about this risky flight, and said proudly: “After I flew back to Tokyo that night, I immediately suggested to President Truman that I send two US divisions to North Korea, and I can hold North Korea.” .” After hearing this, Chiang Kai-shek also said: "When the war is tense, I often take a plane to fly over the front line to observe the battlefield or deploy troops..." Song Meiling knew very well that American public opinion had great opinions on Chiang Kai-shek's old defeat and loss of the mainland, so she said to Chiang Kai-shek that she also flew to the front to command, but did not translate it into English. The welcoming convoy drove straight to the Yangmingshan Hotel where MacArthur stayed.MacArthur and Chiang Kai-shek held two talks in Taipei and stayed for one night.The next day, that is, at 11:00 a.m. on August 1, I flew back to Tokyo from Taipei. The news telegram from the Associated Press stated: It was the first time that MacArthur stayed in a country other than Japan during the five years of his occupation of Japan... MacArthur's trip to Taipei this time caused a disturbance of no small and no magnitude, which planted the seeds of Truman's dismissal of MacArthur's post in the future. Truman and Acheson didn't know that MacArthur himself flew to Taiwan in advance, thinking that he was just Follow the instructions to appoint a senior military officer to go to Taiwan.Afterwards, when people in the news circle in Tokyo gradually revealed the details of McArthur's visit to Taiwan, Truman and Acheson noticed that MacArthur went to Taiwan and secretly tampered with it. On August 1, MacArthur returned to his office in Tokyo, making a big play to Truman's earlier statement that the United States intends to defend Taiwan against the Communist Party's attack. McArthur's remarks have surpassed Truman's dual-track strategy of freezing the situation in Taiwan and preventing the CCP and Taiwan from attacking each other. range of practices.He obliquely stated: "Under the current situation, the island, including the nearby Penghu Islands, will not be subject to military invasion." He went on to say that he had discussed with Chiang Kai-shek "promptly and generously providing" Kuomintang troops to fight in Korea However, the two agreed that sending troops "could seriously weaken the defense of Taiwan itself. Arrangements have been made for effective coordination between the U.S. forces under my command and the Nationalist Chinese forces. This is against a stupid The best strategy for hostile forces to attempt to attack." MacArthur finally praised Chiang Kai-shek: "His indomitable determination to resist the Communist Party rule makes me respect him very much. His determination does not conflict with the public interests and goals of the Americans, that is, , the people of the Pacific shall be free—not enslaved." MacArthur's speech, which is almost a game of words, revealed his unilateral decision to ally the United States with Chiang Kai-shek, who was fighting against the Chinese Communist Party.Mak is making a mockery of the government's policy.Truman was very annoyed and said: "The implication of (MacArthur's) trip is that - some newspapers also think so - MacArthur has violated my policy of neutralizing Taiwan, and he favors a more aggressive approach." People who moved to support MacArthur also thought he had gone too far.In the middle of an editorial in U.S. News & World Report, David Lawrence said: "Is a general who is "used to act rashly, self-assertively, and dictatorially the most desirable diplomatic material?" Boulder, already apprehensively, foresees "a deepening rift between Tokyo and Washington that, if left uncorrected, will lead to disaster." Truman recorded in his diary that this period of time disturbed him so much that he considered replacing MacArthur for a while.However, since the war was at a critical moment, Mai's official position had to be temporarily retained.On the other hand, he sent Harriman, an experienced diplomat and consultant, to Tokyo for an interview with Mai.Harriman is a rich and powerful businessman who has a long diplomatic career and even dealt with Stalin, which enables Harriman to be on an equal footing with MacArthur and dare to find out.Truman asked Harriman to tell MacArthur two things: first, that the president would try his best to meet all his demands; second, that he would not make us fight Mao Zedong.Truman also asked Harriman to find out exactly what wishes MacArthur had made to Chiang Kai-shek. After Harriman arrived in Tokyo, on the surface, everything went well.Harriman told MacArthur that Truman "wanted me to tell you that he would never allow Chiang Kai-shek to be a cause for war with the Chinese Communists on the Continent, and that doing so might drag us into a world war." MacArthur replied that "as a soldier" he would "obey any order given by the President."When Harriman asked about Chiang Kai-shek, MacArthur said that he only discussed military issues with Chiang Kai-shek, and when Chiang Kai-shek intended to turn the topic to political issues, he declined.Chiang Kai-shek offered him command of the Nationalist forces; he said it was "inappropriate," but MacArthur would be willing to give military advice if asked to do so. Harriman said: "General, the United States and Chiang Kai-shek have fundamental differences on the issue of the island of Taiwan. The surnamed Chiang is only ambitious and wants to use Taiwan as a springboard for him to return to the mainland, while the United States intends to use the United Nations on the island of Taiwan. Create an independent government." MacArthur was silent for a while, then looked at Harriman and said, "I also think it is impossible for Chiang Kai-shek to regain the mainland. However, it might be a good idea to get rid of him by letting him attack the mainland." MacArthur finished smoking the pipe.Harriman listened to his advice in silence, feeling a sudden chill. Harriman's trip also included a delicate and undocumented task.He left for Tokyo, and Truman said to him: "When you go this time, I actually want you to watch MacArthur carefully, and report to me when you come back, whether you think the general can continue to be competent for him physically and mentally." Command duty." Harriman obliged, and though his conclusions were not on record, there was a small indication that he had warned the president to be more careful.Within days of Harriman's return to Washington, Truman sent his trusted physician and friend, Major General Frank Lowe, to Tokyo with instructions to report to him "on General MacArthur's physical condition and ability to deal with important events within his authority."After Major General Luo came back, he reported that MacArthur was in good spirits.Truman called it quits.Otherwise, the U.S. military may not have made the amazing move of landing in Incheon. Although Truman and MacArthur had conflicts and differences on the issue of dealing with Chiang Kai-shek, it did not affect Chiang Kai-shek as the biggest beneficiary of the Korean War. On the third day after MacArthur left Taipei, that is, on August 4, his deputy chief of staff, General Fox, flew to Taipei from Tokyo to serve as the head of the military liaison team of MacArthur's headquarters in Taipei. As many as twenty-six people.On the same day, Tenner, commander of the Thirteenth Air Force of the United States, also led his jet fleet to Taipei.On August 5th, the jet fleet of the Thirteenth Air Force flew over Taipei with a strong and piercing roar.That was the first time Taiwanese saw an advanced jet aircraft. Then, on August 10, Landon, the newly appointed U.S. Minister to China, arrived in Taipei to serve as the charge d'affaires of the U.S. Embassy in China.After the Republic of China government moved to Taiwan, Ambassador Stuart had flown back to the United States to recuperate.Washington has been slow to appoint an ambassador.And letting an unknown first secretary, Shi Shuan, act as an agent for the library affairs clearly showed the US Truman administration's indifferent attitude towards the Kuomintang China.Now, since Langdon's arrival, there has been a turning point.Two years later, that is, in April 1953, Langdon was officially appointed as the ambassador to China by the US government, ending the five-year era when the US had no ambassador to China.