 | | Stalin: What is your opinion? Up until now we have only had a trade agreement with Manchuria. We would like to know what sort of a situation we should look forward to in the future: Will we be signing separate agreements with Xinjiang, Manchuria, and other provinces, or a single agreement with the central government?
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| | Mao Zedong: We would like to have a single, central agreement. But in time Xinjiang may have a separate agreement.
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| | Stalin: Just Xinjiang; what about Manchuria?
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| | Zhou Enlai: A separate agreement with Manchuria can be ruled out, since in the agreement with the central government China's obligations would in essence be fulfilled by shipments made from Manchuria.
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| | Stalin: We would like the central government to sanction and take the responsibility for the agreements with Xinjiang or Manchuria.
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| | Mao Zedong: The agreement with Xinjiang must be signed in the name of the central government.
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| | Stalin: Right, since [a] provincial government might not take many things into account, whereas things are always clearer to the central government.
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