The Possiblity of Communist China's Obtaining Oil form Manchuria, Korea, and the Far Eastern USSR

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP78-01617A000700080002-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 20, 1998
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: August 29, 1949
• Content Type: IM

Sanitized - ApprQyAd F 78-016 7AOOO7OOO8OOO2-1 50
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
29 August 1949
INTELLIGENCE MU41ORANDUM NO. 213
SUBJECT: The Possibility of Conmiunist China's Obtaining Oil from.
Manchuria, Korea, and the Far Eastern USSR
1. Information presently available to CIA would not materially
change either the substance or conclusions of the reference paper. 25X1x770008
It is believed however, that may find of interest a recent 2 5 X1
X7
25X1X7
2. Requirements.
The Chinese Nationalists have relied upon imports for more
than 95 percent of their consumption of petroleum, and the Chinese
Communists are similarly dependent. In some respects the Chinese
Communists, as regards meeting petroleum requirements, are now more
favorably situated than the Nationalists were in 19/,8; in others less
so.
The Chinese Communists should be able to get along with
considerably smaller oil imports than were needed by the
Nationalists, because of:
(1)
b.
lower military consumption -- fewer airplanes, tanks:
and automobiles,
(2) reconversion to coal of the power plant and other
industries in the Shanghai area.
On the other hand, the Chinese Communists are now more
handicapped than the Nationalists were in 1948 in procure-
ment of petroleum, because:
(1)
all of Sakhalin's production, and more, is needed in `/
the Soviet Far East. The shale oil from Fushun is in-
sufficient to meet i4anchurian requirements. Kansu
production is too small and remotely located tob~ of
much consequence, Document No. 04
NO CHANGE in Class. o
Sanitized - Approve
^ DECLASSIFIED
Class. CHANGED TO: TS S
CC)
Date t 7 411
Ol a
By:
 Sanitized - Approved For ReI 8-01617000700080002-1
25X1A9a
25X1X7
(3) Shanghai, port of entry for the bulk of China=s
petroleum imports and location ofD of its storage,
is being subjected to an effective Nationalist block-
ade, c u D,,/ c /,ZG'n/LY "lye i7 ~N r~ yiri Tr v.
(2) the distributing organizations of the American oil /
companies on which the Nationalists relied heavily
for oil imports are discontinuing operations,
(4)
lacking a large fleet of ocean-going tankers, the
USSR (and possibly the Chinese Communists) have char-
tered foreign ships to bring in oil from the Black
Sea region, a slow.and'expensive means of getting
supplies.
Under existing circumstances, petroleum supplies for the
Chinese Communists have come principally from overseas
imports, generally via Hong Kong, with smaller amounts
coming overland.
Sanitized - Approved For Release 'CI !RDP78-01617A000700080002-1