Office of the Historian

740.0011 European War 1939/4266: Telegram

The Chargé in the Soviet Union (Thurston) to the Secretary of State

Moscow, June 28, 1940—3 p.m.
[Received 8:50 p.m.]

768. Embassy’s 767, June 28, 2 p.m.50 The communiqué referred to has not yet been received51 but the special 2 p.m. broadcast announcing the acceptance by Rumania of the Soviet demands is understood to have contained the following statements:

A first ultimatum concerning Bessarabia and northern Bukowina was sent by the Soviet Government to Rumania on June 26th and yesterday the Rumanian Government indicated to the Soviet Government willingness to discuss the adjustment of the Soviet demands; this reply was considered indefinite by the Soviet Government, however, which then submitted a second ultimatum yesterday to expire at noon today and containing the following demands:52

1.
That Rumanian troops should evacuate Bessarabia and northern Bukowina within 4 days.
2.
That the Red Army should occupy these districts within the same period.
3.
That on June 28th the Red army should occupy the Rumanian cities of Chernovitsy,53 Kishinev54 and Akkerman.55
4.
That the Rumanian Government should accept full responsibility for any damage which might be found to have been done to railways, telegraph lines, river bridges, etc., in the areas to be occupied and
5.
That a mixed commission of four persons consisting of two Rumanians and two Russians should meet at Odessa to discuss any problems which might arise in connection with the carrying out of these demands.

[Page 485]

At 11 a.m. today the Rumanian Government notified the Soviet Government that in order to avoid bloodshed etc. it was compelled to accept the Soviet terms.56 The Rumanian Government also asked, however, that the 4 days’ time limit mentioned be extended.

Soviet troops crossed the Rumanian frontier at 2 p.m. today.

Repeated to Bucharest.

Thurston
  1. Not printed.↩
  2. The communiqué of the Tass Agency (Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union) upon which the radio broadcast here summarized was based.↩
  3. The translation of this second Soviet ultimatum as sent by the Minister in Rumania in his telegram No. 316, June 28, likewise dispatched at 3 p.m., was not received in the Department until 11:30 a m. on June 29.↩
  4. Cernauti.↩
  5. Chisinau.↩
  6. Cetatea-Alba.↩
  7. For the text of this Rumanian reply, see telegram No. 331, July 3, 1 p.m., from the Minister in Rumania, p. 489.↩