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Welcome to Declassified. Today, we delve into a declassified C-I-A record concerning anti-Communist forces in the Yunnan-Burma border region, dated February eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. This document offers a glimpse into early American intelligence efforts regarding post-revolutionary China, accessible via archive.org and storyflo.com. This document was released under a Freedom of Information Act request, case number F-two-thousand-and-one-zero-zero-zero-two-eight, and declassified on February eighteenth, two-thousand-and-six, by the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel, or I-S-C-A-P. It provides raw, contemporary intelligence from a United States Embassy. The document, a memorandum from Rangoon to the Department of State, reads: Subject: Anti-Communist forces in Yunnan-Burma border region. There is enclosed herewith a table setting forth such information as the Embassy has been able to obtain in recent weeks on anti-Communist resistance groups in China. Although Burma has an eight-hundred-mile-long border with Communist China, it has proved extremely difficult to obtain specific data on guerrilla activity there. This has been due in part to the general lack of such information among the Burmese, who appear little interested in Chinese guerrilla forces except those within their own borders; and in part to the difficulty of extracting such information as Burmese officialdom does have due to their exaggerated suspicions of American collaboration with anti-Communist Chinese forces. Moreover, as Burma recognizes the Chinese Communist regime, pro-Nationalist Chinese coming from Yunnan, especially those categories of persons most likely to have detailed knowledge of guerrilla activity, are immediately interned by the Burmese authorities; or, if they escape official detection, are forced to lie low. Thus, the Embassy has little opportunity to exploit such sources. Although ordinary travelers from Yunnan have been frequently interviewed by Embassy officers, they have seldom had any specific information on guerrilla activity. Under these circumstances, the gathering of information requested by the Department through normal channels can only produce negligible results, and if more detailed information is needed, it should be obtained through some agency having more direct means of obtaining it. In the meantime, however, the Embassy will continue to gather and report all information on this subject accessible to it. In general, anti-Communist guerrilla activity in the Yunnan-Burma border region appears to be small-scale and to be carried on rather sporadically. In fact, travelers from Yunnan say that guerrilla activity along the Burma Road has diminished of late. Aside from the group of Chinese Nationalist troops in southwestern Kengtung (Burma), guerrilla forces in the border region are probably not in direct communication with Taipei. [two lines redacted under exemption B1] indirect liaison seems to be maintained by [two lines redacted under…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

Case File · ARCHIVE-002Declassified

Filed OCT 24 · 2026Runtime 1 min

CIA Today, We Delve Into A Declassified C I A Record Concerning Anti Communist

U.S. public record · FOIAUpdated October 24, 2026

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◆ BLUF — The short version

Welcome to Declassified. Today, we delve into a declassified C-I-A record concerning anti-Communist forces in the Yunnan-Burma border region, dated February eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. com. This document was released under a Freedom of Information Act request, case number F-two-thousand-and-one-zero-zero-zero-two-eight, and declassified on February eighteenth, two-thousand-and-six, by the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel, or I-S-C-A-P.

Date: OCT 24 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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What was CIA Today, We Delve Into A Declassified C I A Record Concerning Anti Communist about?: Welcome to Declassified. Today, we delve into a declassified C-I-A record concerning anti-Communist forces in the Yunnan-Burma border region, dated February eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. com. This document was released under a Freedom of Information Act request, case number F-two-thousand-and-one-zero-zero-zero-two-eight, and declassified on February eighteenth, two-thousand-and-six, by the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel, or I-S-C-A-P.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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