The Sino-American Treaty for the Relinquishment of Extraterritorial Rights in China or Sino-American New Equal Treaty was a
bilateral treaty A bilateral treaty (also called a bipartite treaty) is a treaty strictly between two state entities. It is an agreement made by negotiations between two parties, established in writing and signed by representatives of the parties. Treaties can span ...
signed by the United States and the
Republic of China on January 11, 1943. The formal name of the treaty was ''Treaty Between the United States of America and the Republic of China for the Relinquishment of Extraterritorial Rights in China and the Regulation of Related Matters''. It became effective on May 20, 1943, following the mutual exchange of
ratification
Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...
s pursuant to Article VIII.
After
the United States declared war upon Japan on December 8, 1941, the governments of the United States and United Kingdom mutually decided that it would be advantageous to end
extraterritoriality
In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.
Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cl ...
and the unilateral privileges in China that had been granted by the "
unequal treaties
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
." Extraterritoriality was thus ended, making citizens of the United States and United Kingdom in China subject to Chinese law, as well as the existence of
treaty ports
Treaty ports (; ja, 条約港) were the port cities in China and Japan that were opened to foreign trade mainly by the unequal treaties forced upon them by Western powers, as well as cities in Korea opened up similarly by the Japanese Empire. ...
and their autonomous foreign settlements,
legation quarter
The Peking Legation Quarter was the area in Peking (Beijing), China where a number of foreign legations were located between 1861 and 1959. In the Chinese language, the area is known as ''Dong Jiaomin Xiang'' (), which is the name of the ''hutong ...
s, and the right to station foreign warships in Chinese waters and foreign troops on Chinese territory.
In close coordination with the United States, the United Kingdom and China also established
a corresponding treaty which served essentially the same purpose and was concluded on the same day.
Background
After war was declared between the United States and Japan in December 1941, the United States became China's ally but could not send military aid on the large scale needed. Japanese officials justified their conquests by claiming that Japan was liberating Asia from Western imperialism and that Westerners were racist and exploitative. A high official in the U.S. Department of State warned that "the Chinese are becoming increasingly disappointed and resentful" and that some Chinese were "beginning to talk of the possibility of China ceasing to be an active belligerent..." Former U.S. Secretary of State
Cordell Hull, although not in the inner circle on policy toward China, turned his attention to negotiating a treaty to end the privileges granted over the previous century. The treaty was ratified by the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
unanimously and came into effect on 20 May 1943.
In
Chongqing, China's wartime capital, Generalissimo
Chiang Kai-shek declared that with the signing of the treaties, "an independent China on equal footing" has become "a real friend" of Great Britain and the United States. Henceforth, Chiang concluded, "if we are weak, if we lack self-confidence, the fault will be ours." The official press praised Chiang. One newspaper said that the treaties made the Unequal Treaties into no more than "a stack of waste paper," and bragged that if it were not for our Party and for Sun Yat-sen and Generalissimo Chiang the treaties would still be in force. The leftist and communist press reacted quickly. They praised the efforts of the Communist Party in creating the
United Front
A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts and/or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political ...
and claimed that the party had been a leader in the struggle for national liberation.
In December 1943, in response to some of the same pressures which brought about the end of extraterritoriality, the Senate passed the
Chinese Exclusion Repeal Act which ended the formal and legal exclusion of Chinese from immigration to the United States.
Terms of the Treaty
The terms of the Treaty are summarized as follows:
* Article I: The U.S. relinquished all rights to
extraterritoriality
In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.
Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cl ...
in China, including such rights previously established under the
Treaty of Wanghia
The Treaty of Wanghia (also known as the Treaty of Wangxia; Treaty of peace, amity, and commerce, between the United States of America and the Chinese Empire; ) was the first of the unequal treaties imposed by the United States on China. As per ...
and the
Treaty of Tientsin
The Treaty of Tientsin, also known as the Treaty of Tianjin, is a collective name for several documents signed at Tianjin (then romanized as Tientsin) in June 1858. The Qing dynasty, Russian Empire, Second French Empire, United Kingdom, and t ...
. As a result, the
United States Court for China
The United States Court for China was a United States district court that had extraterritorial jurisdiction over U.S. citizens in China. It existed from 1906 to 1943 and had jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters, with appeals taken to the U.S ...
and the U.S. Consular Courts in China, which exercised extraterritorial jurisdiction in China, were abolished.
* Article II: The U.S. and China terminated the
Boxer Protocol.
* Article III: The U.S. agreed that administration and control of the International Settlements at
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...
and
Amoy
Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...
should revert to China. Accordingly, the U.S. relinquished its rights of administration and control back to China and agreed to assist China with obtaining the relinquishment of such rights from other countries.
* Article IV: Previous
real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
titles and leases in China were to be respected.
* Article V: The U.S. had long allowed Chinese nationals to travel, reside, and carry on trade within its territory. Under Article V, China reciprocated these rights for U.S. nationals within its territory. The U.S. and China also agreed to treat each other's nationals within its territory the same as its own nationals with respect to all legal proceedings, administration of justice, and taxation.
* Article VI: Each nation was authorized to establish consular offices in the other nation. Nationals of each nation present in the other nation were authorized to communicate with their nation's consular offices.
* Article VII: The U.S. and China agreed that both nations would negotiate a comprehensive modern treaty of friendship, commerce, navigation and consular rights six months after the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. The
Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the United States of America and the Republic of China[''Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the United States of America and the Republic of China'', Nov. 4, 1946, U.S.-China]
63 Stat.
1299, T.I.A.S. 1871, 6 Bevans 761
25 U.N.T.S.
69. was established as a result.
* Article VIII: The requirements for the Treaty to become effective, including
ratification
Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inte ...
, were set forth. In accordance with these requirements, the Treaty became effective on May 20, 1943.
Notes
Sources and further reading
*
* {{cite book , last = Wang , first = Dong , year = 2005 , title = China's Unequal Treaties: Narrating National History , publisher = Lexington Books, location = Lanham, Md., url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mTVZjRfek2IC , isbn = 0739112082
External links
Treaty Between The United States And China For The Relinquishment Of Extraterritorial Rights In China And The Regulation Of Related MattersChina's External Relations
Treaties concluded in 1943
Treaties of the Republic of China (1912–1949)
Treaties of the United States
World War II treaties
1943 in China
China–United States relations
Shanghai International Settlement
Extraterritorial jurisdiction
January 1943 events