FOREIGN OFFICE FILES FOR CHINA, 1949-1976
(Public Record Office Classes FO 371 and FCO 21)

Part 5: Complete Files for 1953 (PRO Class FO 371/105188-105355)

Part 5 provides complete coverage of the FO 371 files covering China and Formosa for 1953.

• This microfilm edition contains many files on Formosa (Taiwan) concerning American policy, the deneutralisation of the Formosan Straits, and the impact on British trade and shipping in the region.
• There are an extensive number of files on China’s economy, industrial development and the introduction of collective agreements to fulfil the Five Year Plan, 1953-1957.
• The project also offers a fascinating insight into various Chinese personalities, including: reports on the movements of Chang Wen Tien, the Chinese Ambassador to the Soviet Union, details on Aitchen K Wu, friend of Chou en Lai and material on Thomas Liao and the Formosan Democratic Independence Party.

With access to full coverage of all 1953 Foreign Office Files for China, academics will be able to research topics such as:

• the Korean War and armistice negotiations.
• the economic situation in Formosa.
• Chinese anti-Western propaganda.
• the Chinese economy and the first Five Year Plan.
• American support for Formosa.
• British firms and commercial interests operating in China.