File No. 861.00/2598½
Statement of the Japanese
Ambassador
The enemy forces in front of the Czecho-Slovak troops in the
Maritime Provinces which were hitherto estimated to be from
10,000 to 12,000 are reported to have obtained a reinforcement
of 3,000 strong and are now pressing the Czecho-Slovaks to the
south. A part of the British and French detachments have first
been sent out to their aid. The Japanese contingent which landed
at Vladivostok on the 13th instant has also dispatched a
detachment in view of the increasing urgent situation. The
combined forces of all the Allied contingents in and near
Vladivostok amount at present to only 14,000 and it will require
more than two months to attain the strength of about 25,000 as
originally figured out by the American Government. The
consequence is that it would prove extremely difficult for this
present feeble force of the Allies to deal the confronting enemy
a complete blow before the winter sets in and that the important
object of relieving in time the Czecho-Slovak army in Siberia
would end in failure.
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At the military conference recently held at Vladivostok of the
inter-Allied representative officers it was unanimously
concluded that the only way to meet the situation would be to
have the new reinforcement promptly sent from Japan, the
American representatives taking the initiative in proposing to
report to the respective governments about the situation
presented and the conclusion reached.
In the meantime General Dietrichs commanding
the Czecho-Slovak forces has repeatedly appealed to the Japanese
General Staff with the same object. The Imperial Government have
given their most earnest consideration to the imminent situation
thus created. In view of the fact that the Allied powers have
sent their troops to Siberia with their declared object of
rescuing the Czechoslovaks, the Imperial Government came to the
conclusion that it would be an irreparable loss of the Allies’
prestige if they should now hesitate to send further
reinforcements absolutely necessary to the execution of their
object. The Imperial Government have, therefore, the intention
of sending anew about 10,000 troops to the Maritime
Provinces.
The enemy prisoners under the leadership of Lieutenant General
Taube (?) and with their principal
force at Chita are exerting themselves in conjunction with the
Bolsheviki to prevent the Czecho-Slovaks in their westward
advance. The enemy forces distributed between Manchouli and Lake
Baikal are reported to be not less than 30,000. The 6,000 or
7,000 Czecho-Slovaks now concentrating in the neighborhood of
Harbin would find it next to impossible to force their way
through the outnumbering enemy to the Baikal and deliver their
brothers. If they cannot reach the Baikal before the winter sets
in, their brothers beyond the lake would be placed in a most
perilous situation. Any military action will become extremely
difficult in the Za-Baikal region in about a month hence.
In order to enable the Czecho-Slovaks to join hands with their
brothers in western Siberia, it becomes absolutely necessary
that a force of sufficient strength should at once be dispatched
to assist the Czecho-Slovaks in their westward movement so that
they will at least occupy Chita, the enemy headquarters, before
the approaching winter and disperse the enemy forces in the
Za-Baikal region. In view of these considerations, the Imperial
Government intend to send another detachment (probably one
division) to this region.
It is a matter of mutual satisfaction that the friendly attitude
of Japan and her allies has been generally recognized by the
Russians in Siberia and that the dispatch of the Allied troops
has been welcomed by them so far as can be judged by the reports
at hand. It is the belief of the Japanese Government that the
intended reinforcements in the Maritime Provinces and the
dispatch of troops to the Za-Baikal region may not give rise to
any unfavorable development on the part of the local
inhabitants. The Japanese Government feel confident that the
American Government will entertain the same view with them in
the light of the recent situation in Siberia.
