860F.01/535
The British Embassy to the Department of State
Aide-Mémoire
His Majesty’s Ambassador2 has the honour to inform Mr. Hull that the Czechoslovak Minister for Foreign Affairs3 has given His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Czechoslovak Republic4 a copy of a draft entitled “Scheme of Arrangements to Operate when the Allied Armies enter Czechoslovakian Territory”. This is in the form of a short agreement on civil affairs following broadly the model agreements which the British and United States Governments have negotiated with the Western European Allied Governments. It contemplates an operational area within which the Commander of the Allied army of liberation would have supreme authority, handing over the administration to the legitimate Czechoslovak Government (who will be represented by a special delegate) as soon as military considerations permit. The text of this document is contained in Annex A.5
M. Masaryk has explained that the Czech draft is based upon discussions which took place between President Benes and Marshal Stalin,6 M. Molotov7 and other Russians during President Benes’ recent visit to Russia. It has, however, been drafted for political reasons in such a way that it would apply to all Allied forces and not to the Russians alone. The draft had been given to the Soviet Ambassador to the Czechoslovak Republic8 on March 14th, and it is understood that it was also being given to the United States Government.
It appears that the Czechoslovak Government hope that the British and United States Governments, as well as the Soviet Government, will make agreements with them on the lines of this draft. They attach much importance to concerting arrangements for the administration of their liberated territory with their Western Allies also, [Page 518] and not treating the matter as one of sole concern to the Soviet Union. Without consulting His Majesty’s Government, the Czechoslovak Government issued an official communiqué on March 18th to the effect that they had communicated proposals to the Soviet, British and American Governments regarding the Administration of their country upon liberation.
Instructions are being sent to His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Czechoslovak Republic to tell the Czechoslovak Minister for Foreign Affairs that His Majesty’s Government quite understand the reasons for which his Government wish to make an agreement on civil affairs with the Soviet Government, that His Majesty’s Government have no criticism to offer on their draft (apart from a doubt about the meaning of paragraph 3) and that His Majesty’s Government hope the Czechoslovak Government will keep His Majesty’s Government informed about the progress of their negotiations. At the same time Mr. Nichols is to explain that for geographic and practical reasons His Majesty’s Government do not think any parallel Anglo-Czechoslovak agreement is called for at present.
The Czechoslovak Government have also asked through Mr. Nichols for assistance in transporting their representatives by British aircraft to liberated Czechoslovakian territory. His Majesty’s Government are instructing Mr. Nichols to reply that while they will sympathetically consider, in conjunction with the Soviet authorities, the possibility of making the necessary arrangements for the return of the Czechoslovak representatives when the time comes, they cannot commit themselves now in hypothetical circumstances to routes or other particulars.
Lord Halifax has been instructed to inform the State Department and explain that as the Czechoslovak Government were anxious for an early answer and as Czecholovakia is not within any combined command His Majesty’s Government felt able to give this temporizing reply without prior consultation in Washington. His Majesty’s Government hope the State Department will be taking a similar line in their reply to the Czechoslovak approach and suggest that the two Governments should concert together as regards future developments.
- Lord Halifax.↩
- Jan Masaryk.↩
- Philip Bowyer Nichols.↩
- Not printed; it was substantially the same as draft arrangement quoted in telegram 3 Zecho, March 17, 5 p.m., from London, p. 515.↩
- Iosif Vissarionovich Stalin, Chairman of the Council of People’s Commissars of the Soviet Union.↩
- Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov, People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union.↩
- Viktor Zakharovich Lebedyev.↩