NEWS OF THE WEEK
HE question of the status of Formosa has been eagerly seized on by all those in this country who are tempera- mentally or doctrinally opposed to the idea of accepting American leadership in international affairs. In the past eek it has been frequently stated that the diplomatic attitudes
f Britain and America towards China are widely divergent hich is true) ; that Formosa is a part of China (which is ebatable) ; and that unless the Americans revise their policy wards Formosa we should qualify the support which we are urrently giving to them in the Far East (Which is nonsense). hat is the American policy towards Formosa ? In his statement n July 27th, President Truman said that " the occupation of ormosa by Communist troops would be a direct threat to the urity of the Pacific area and to United States forces performing heir lawful and necessary functions in that area.", So it would. [he decision to use the American Seventh Fleet to prevent either a pommunist landing on the island or Nationalist attacks on the .tainland folloWed logically. This action may have upset Corn- nunist plans for the conquest of Formosa, but the Communist ittack on Korea upset the United Nations' plans for peace, and g the two the latter are the more important. There is, of course, to reason to lose sight of the fact that military intervention by the Jnited Nations in Korea must be only the preliminary to a diplo- natic settlement, and that this settlement must be worked- out hrough United Nations machinery. President Truman has shown inself as aware of this as anyone. But until the moment of ettlement arrives, the war continues, and the war is in Korea.. It Jill not spread to Formosa unless Mao Tse-tung means it to, and he evidence is that he is prepared to wait until later for his pound f flesh. If it was presented to him on a plate at this stage of the roceedings the war in Korea would be lost and the authority of le United Nations destroyed. This seems rather a high price to ay for keeping unruffled his susceptibilities and those of-the chronic PPeaSerS.
