CDKW00358 - Communist Negotiations

In a memorandum written by Undersecretary of State for External Affairs Arnold Heeney the same day as the previous note, External Affairs contended with a different set of issues with negotiations per communications with the United Kingdom. In general, Ottawa appeared in favour of approaching Peking in confidence and not publicizing any efforts to negotiate, feeling that there would be more trust felt in Peking and Moscow by this move. However, Ottawa recognized that the Communists could leak these approaches themselves. Though they note that the UK had pitched approaching Moscow as well, Heeney stated his apprehension about approaching both Peking and Moscow. Heeney feared that approaching both powers regarding negotiations could be seen as an attempt to drive a wedge between the communist allies or be interpreted to indicate that Communist China was effectively a USSR satellite state, preemptively halting negotiations with Peking. However, everyone involved agreed that negotiations should be formally turned over to the UN as soon as Peking would allow, despite its discontent over its exclusion from the Security Council.