860c.01/6–2945: Telegram

No. 493
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union ( Harriman ) to the Secretary of State ad interim
secret
us urgent

2322. Polco . The Polish Amb 1 handed me this afternoon a message addressed to Pres. Truman signed by Osóbka-Morawski PriMin with the request that I transmit it to my govt. Translation of text of message is quoted in my next following tel.2

Modzelewski referring to the second pgh of the message stated that the new govt had at its first meeting recognized the Yalta decisions in their entirety and that this of course applied to the holding of elections as well as the other matters contained therein.

The word “Provisional” has not been included in the title of the new govt. I did not notice this until after the Amb had departed. It will be recalled that at the last meeting of the Commission Bierut on behalf of his associates of the Warsaw Govt and the new Ministers pledged himself unequivocally to the acceptance of the word Provisional unless the Brit and American Govts were prepared to agree to its elimination Mr. Molotov having already indicated the Soviet Govt’s approval of its deletion.

I have asked the Brit Amb 3 to raise this question with Modzelewski when he calls on him later this afternoon.4

I find also that the Moscow morning papers in referring to the new govt have omitted the word Provisional so that it is to be assumed that in Poland in the announcement of the formation of the new govt the word Provisional has not been included.

I will comment (ReDept’s 1426, June 26, 7 p.m.5) on the draft text of the proposed reply6 in a subsequent message.

The list of the members of the new govt7 conforms to the tentative list handed me in Moscow by Mikołajczyk except for the addition of the two new Ministries created at yesterday’s meeting of the presidium.

I therefore consider it as conforming with the agreement approved by the Commission.

Harriman
  1. Zygmunt Modzelewski.
  2. Not printed. For the final text of Osóbka-Morawski’s message, see Department of State Bulletin, vol. xiii, p. 47.
  3. Sir Archibald Clark Kerr.
  4. The word “Provisional” was subsequently inserted in the phrase “Polish Provisional Government of National Unity” in Osóbka-Morawski’s message.
  5. Not printed.
  6. See enclosure 1 to document No. 496.
  7. See the subattachment to document No. 483.