Office of the Historian

760D.61/1525: Telegram

The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State

Moscow, October 9, 1940—11 a.m.
[Received 4 p.m.]

1314. The Finnish Minister yesterday informed me that the agreement reached between the Soviet and Finnish Governments in regard to the Åland Islands69 in substance reaffirms their status as laid down in the 1921 convention. He also confirmed the information contained in the telegram No. 420, October 3, 11 a.m.70 from the Legation at Helsinki adding, however, that at the Soviet request this division71 was to prevail for only the first year of the agreement.

The Minister also informed me that the total number of German troops that have thus far passed through Finland under the recent German-Finnish transit agreement have been 2,000. He added that Molotov had inquired as to the purpose of this transit agreement and when informed that it merely provides for a limited number of German troops going and coming on leave to and from northern Norway, Molotov offered no criticism or further comment. The Minister stated that Finnish-German relations were correct but that he had no reason to believe that a German guaranty of Finland was desired by the Finnish Government or was in any way imminent. In respect of Soviet-Finnish relations the Minister confirmed the information [Page 351] contained in my No. 1152, September 11, 1 p.m.72 that during the past 6 weeks there had been a noticeable change for the better in the attitude of the Soviet Government in regard to Finland; that virtually all questions of any importance between the two countries had been settled and that recently on no less than two occasions Molotov had categorically assured him that the Soviet Union had no further claims on Finland.

Steinhardt
  1. The Finnish Diet authorized the Government on October 8, 1940, to conclude the proposed convention. It was signed on October 11, and ratifications were exchanged at Helsinki on October 21. For text, see Finland, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finland Reveals Her Secret Documents on Soviet Policy, March 1940–June 1941, p. 65.↩
  2. Not printed.↩
  3. See telegram No. 328, July 29, 4 p.m., from the Minister in Finland, p. 334.↩
  4. Not printed.↩