Written Reply Regarding Principles
of the Negotiations
with the Guomindang
(February 12, 1937, 3:00 A.M.)
demands can we avoid being compelled to make further concessions and to
fulfill our promises immediately.


7. Left-wing personages at the Third Plenum such as Madam Sun should not
be given too much prominence. It would be best if Chiang were consulted first
on the proposals, and points that Chiang is thought to be unwilling to accept
were left out. Please inform [Pan] Hannian.


Luo [Fu]
Mao [Zedong]


Zhou [Enlai]:
Please pay attention to the following:


1. Defense sectors should include Jinji and Lingwu. If the Northeastern Army
is indeed to be transferred, we should also ask for Haiyuan, Guyuan, Zhengyuan,
and Xifengzhen because the defense areas we now have are truly insufficient.
We do not, however, mean to encourage the transfer of the Northeastern Army.
On the other hand, if it becomes unavoidable after the Northeastern Army is
transferred,¹ it would be appropriate to repeat explicitly the demand for the
whole of northern Shaanxi and Ningxia, which has been put forward earlier to
Nanjing. But in order not to increase Chiang's difficulties, this may be discussed
only at a later date.


2. Although defense sectors have been designated for the West Route Army,
they have neither yielded these sectors nor stopped fighting with us. We should
demand a ceasefire and the yielding of defense sectors.


3. The Red Army guerrilla units in provinces other than Shaanxi and Gansu,
including the ones over a thousand men strong, shall all be converted to militia
or defense regiments; it is absolutely inappropriate to have them transferred to
concentrate their forces in Shaanxi and Gansu.


4. Try to reject the propositions of political instruction liaison officers, or at
least delay them.


5. Funds should be provided from February.


6. During the negotiations, you should restate the position put forward in our
telegram to the Third Plenum, to the effect that we will carry out the four items
we pledged only if they carry out the five demands made of them. Otherwise the
other side will try to compel us to make further concessions. In reality these are
our minimum conditions, and no further concessions should be made. Moreover,
it will take more time to carry this out (it is very difficult to persuade the cadres
and the popular masses), and only by insisting that the other side fulfill our five

--- Notes

Our source for this text is Wenxian he yanjiu, no. 4 (1985) (pp. 207-8 of the annual
compendium).

1. The editors of Wenxian he yanjiu state that something is probably missing after this
clause.