National Science Committee, Briefings on Receiving Foreign Guests, No. 3

Briefings on the Visit of the Atomic Energy Group of the Indonesian Economic Delegation

1. This morning our special team in charge of this visit accompanied the Atomic Energy Group on a visit to a nuclear reactor, optics laboratories, electronics laboratories, affiliated factories, computer science research institute and program control machine tool at Tsinghua University. Professor Gao Jingde from the Scientific Production Department of Tsinghua University received the guests on behalf of the University. After Professor Gao briefly introduced the history of the University, the guests showed interest in the Chinese education system, the policy of the Party on education, the situation of Chinese higher education in engineering, the year of study and conditions of foreign students. When talking about engineering colleges and institutes, the head of the group asked if Tsinghua has any department related to aviation and spaceflight.

2. During the ride in the automobile, the head of the group disclosed that he used to work for the Indonesian Air Force. He was transferred to his current position by the national research department. Another member disclosed that he used to work at the Indonesian Embassy in the Soviet Union. The above information proved again that these two persons are military men.

3. One group member raised the following questions during conversations with our staff: Why the People’s Liberation Army cancelled collar insignia and badges; and what is the difference between the people’s communes in China and the collective farms in the Soviet Union. He also expressed the wish to visit the homes of his acquaintances, and to talk to ordinary people and get to know their living standards and life styles. He asked whether this is permissible. Our answer is “yes.” This group member said: “I was never allowed to do so during my two-year stay in the Soviet Union, which was very bad.” He also asked: “Do you think peaceful coexistence is the main reason for the Soviet Union to side with the United States?” He also asked his interpreter whether the Chinese Academy of Sciences produce atomic bombs. Our answer is: “The institutes at the Chinese Academy of Sciences conduct basic scientific research; they do not produce atomic bombs.”