861.00/3587
The French Chargé (De Chambrun) to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received December 26.]
Mr. Secretary of State: I have the honor to inform you, by direction of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic, that the French and English Governments have agreed upon the following determination of the relations of Generals Janin10 and Knox11 to each other in their respective commands: General Janin would be in chief command of all the Allied, Russian and allogeneous troops in eastern Russia and west of Lake Baikal in Siberia. General Knox, as his assistant, would be in charge of the services in the rear, with the special duty of providing all the contingents at the front with the needed supplies.
In directing me to acquaint you with this arrangement which, it doubts not, will meet with the Federal Government’s approval, my Government calls attention to the fact that it does not in any way alter the position previously taken in principle about the recognition of the powers and duties of the Japanese High Command over all the Allied forces operating east of the Baikal.
In my Government’s judgment, the splitting of the command in the eastern and western parts of Siberia, which is justified by the requirements of the command itself, should not in any way tend to weaken the homogeneousness of the Russian contingents or prevent their being utilized out of the section in either zone where they may happen to be.
The recent occurrences at Omsk indeed have shown the true advantage there is in asserting the political solidarity of the two Siberian regions by a physical support of western Siberia by eastern Siberia. To keep the communications over the Trans-Siberian open and to carry, if the necessity arises, Russian forces organized in [Page 460] eastern Siberia to the Ural front, are two conditions that must be fulfilled if that support is to be efficacious.
The Government of the Republic suggests to that end, that in order to insure the safekeeping of the Trans-Siberian, mixed detachments be formed with American and Japanese contingents in equal numbers which would be distributed at the main points of the line. Beside the military advantage to be derived from placing at General Janin’s disposal Russian contingents raised or maintained by the Japanese Government, the suggested utilization of those detachments would likely bring to an end the grave difficulties brought upon eastern Siberia by the dissenting and turbulent elements which operate there far from the base of their autonomous action and may at any time stir up fresh trouble.
My Government would be glad if the foregoing suggestions were favorably entertained by the Federal Government and if instructions in that sense were sent to the American military authorities in Russia.
Be pleased to accept [etc.]