Secretary of State John Foster Dulles concluded the agreement with Chinese foreign minister George Yeh for the defence of the islands of Formosa (Taiwan) and Pescadores.

At a news conference, Mr Dulles made it clear that any attack on the two islands from the mainland would result in a "state of war" with the Chinese Communists.

He was asked whether the US would retaliate if Formosa was attacked.

Mr Dulles replied: "That would be a probable result. There must be a certain liberty for mobile forces to retaliate at places of their own choosing, though, this would not necessarily mean general war and the use of atomic bombs."

Negotiations for the defence pact between the US and head of the Nationalist Chinese Government, Chiang Kai-Shek, have been in progress for many months but there was no indication that the agreement would be completed so quickly.

The secretary of state's formal announcement declared that the pact would follow the pattern of other security treaties concluded by the US in the Pacific area.

This pact, the statement added, would forge another link in the system of collective security, and provide the essential framework for the defence of the Western Pacific against communist aggression.

The agreement comes as 11 American soldiers and two civilians remain imprisoned in China.

The Americans were captured and detained for alleged espionage last month after their planes were shot down over a recognised combat zone of Korea.

President Eisenhower condemned their imprisonment as "completely indefensible" and warned that Chinese ports would be blockaded if they were not released.

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