Comrade Filippov (1):

(1) Your two telegrams of June 25 and June 28 have both been received. I fully agree with your views. First, regarding the delivery schedule for the equipment of the 60 divisions, it should be determined solely on the basis of the Soviet Union's production and transport capabilities, that is to say, the orders for the 60 divisions should be completed within three years, with the orders for 10 divisions to be completed within 1951. Second, the table of organization you proposed for a modern Chinese infantry division is very good, and we shall proceed according to this table. Once the Chinese army is equipped with 60 infantry divisions organized according to this table, it will be much stronger than the present army.

(2) Malik's speech [2] has enabled us to seize the initiative on the question of peace negotiations. On June 28, I received the main points of the conversation between Comrade Gromyko [4] and U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union Kirk, delivered by Comrade Roshchin [3], with a note at the end stating: only two persons from each side shall participate, and these representatives should be representatives of the respective military commands concerned, not representatives of the governments. In this way, the Chinese side would participate in the negotiations as representatives of the volunteer forces, without China participating as a belligerent state. I consider this approach to be very appropriate.

Today Comrade Kim Il Sung [1] sent a telegram asking how to respond if Ridgway [2] requests talks. I have already telegraphed Comrade Kim Il Sung and Comrade Peng Dehuai [3], instructing them, on the one hand, to actively attend to combat operations and not allow the enemy to succeed; and on the other hand, to have Comrade Kim Il Sung and Comrade Peng Dehuai hold consultations once to prepare to dispatch appropriate negotiating representatives when the enemy requests talks. As for how to answer Ridgway's question, we shall consider the content and wording of the reply when we receive Ridgway's request. What is your opinion on this matter? If negotiations can indeed take place, your close guidance of these negotiations will be very necessary, so as to avoid falling into the enemy's trap.

Comrade Kim Il Sung's telegram is attached for your reference.

Mao Zedong
June 29, 1951

[1] Filippov, i.e., Stalin.
[2] Soviet representative to the United Nations Malik, in a speech delivered on June 23, 1951, during the "Price of Peace" radio program organized by the UN Department of Public Information, stated: "The Soviet people believe that the cause of preserving peace is possible, and that the armed conflict in Korea—the most acute issue at present—can also be resolved. To achieve this, there must be a willingness on all sides to resolve the Korean question peacefully. The Soviet people believe that the first step should be negotiations between the belligerent parties for a ceasefire and armistice, and the withdrawal of forces by both sides from the 38th parallel."
[3] Roshchin, then Soviet Ambassador to China.
[4] Gromyko, then Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union.
[1] Kim Il Sung, then Premier of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
[2] Ridgway, then Commander-in-Chief of the "United Nations Command" and Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Far East Command.
[3] Peng Dehuai, then Commander and Political Commissar of the Chinese People's Volunteers.