740.00113 European War 1939/1102: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 9—12:50 p.m.]
6833. An indication of the attitude of the Soviet [Union] towards Poland was given here on October 7 at a meeting of the Subcommittee on Axis Acts of Dispossession. This subcommittee was appointed immediately after the signing on January 5, 1943 of the Inter-Allied [Page 452] Declaration Against Acts of Dispossession Committed in Territories Under Enemy Occupation or Control, to prepare for the main committee a factual report on methods of dispossession and on existing legislation that might be used to invalidate forced transfers. Each government was asked to submit a memorandum to the subcommittee on the facts relating to its own territory. The subcommittee then drew up a draft memorandum to cover the whole field.
At a meeting on October 7 to consider the draft memorandum the Soviet representative, M. Istchenko, a member of the Soviet Trade Delegation, made the following statement.
“Before the subcommittee considers the draft interim report I have the following statement to make:
The members of the subcommittee were invited to submit a memorandum on acts of dispossession practised by the Axis on their own territories. Those memoranda were intended to be a source of information and a basis for report. Among the memoranda received by the subcommittee is one submitted by the Polish representative. The said memorandum contains references to territories which are an integral part of the territories of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. These references are on the following pages: Page 1, lines 6–8, 11–21, 26–36; page 2, lines 27–29; page 4, lines 35–37; page 13, lines 34–54; page 14, lines 11 and 53–55; page 15, lines 27–29 and 43.
Taking into consideration the above, I submit that the memorandum of the Polish representative should be corrected in the appropriate way. In any case the said memorandum in its present form cannot be enclosed with the interim report of the subcommittee.”
In view of the passages to which the Russian representative has made reference, it appears that territories in question are those in eastern Poland which were occupied by Russian forces shortly after the German invasion of Poland.
Gregory, chairman of subcommittee and Controller of Trading with Enemy Department, stated it would be difficult to ask the Polish representative to withdraw or correct report of his Government and suggested that a formula be inserted into the report making it clear that the references to Poland referred to the geographic area administered by Polish Government on September 1, 1939, and did not affect in any way whatsoever any outstanding question concerning adjustment of frontiers. It is not clear at present whether the Russian representative will be satisfied with anything less than correction of Polish memorandum.
Polish memorandum in question is document I.A.D. 33 of Subcommittee on Axis Acts of Dispossession transmitted to Department under cover of despatch 10904 dated August 30.26 Copy of draft [Page 453] report on methods of dispossession practiced in Europe will be forwarded to Department immediately.27
I thought you would like to know about this incident before your departure.27a