Office of the Historian

124.61/9–1745: Airgram

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

Moscow, September 17, 1945.
[Received September 27—6 p.m.]

A–231. In Note No. 378 of July 6, 1945, the Ambassador again requested Vyshinski to use his good offices with appropriate Soviet authorities to expedite issuance of Soviet exit visas to nine Soviet women who have married members of the staff of this Embassy. This request was repeated in Embassy’s Note 416 of August 4, 448 of August 13, and 521 of September 7. These notes were in support of the applications for exit visas of the following wives:

  • Mrs. Edward Ames
  • Mrs. James Alexander Collins
  • Mrs. George John Golubowski
  • Mrs. Louis Maurice Hirshfield
  • Mrs. Ernest Arthur Jacques
  • Mrs. Joseph Lew Richardson
  • Mrs. Kemp Tolley
  • Mrs. Byron Uskievich
  • Mrs. William Elwood Wallace

On September 13, a reply was received from the Foreign Office stating that the issuance of exit visas had been authorized for:

  • Mrs. Edward Ames
  • Mrs. James Alexander Collins
  • Mrs. George John Golubowski
  • Mrs. Ernest Arthur Jacques
  • Mrs. Joseph Lew Richardson

It is interesting to note that the five exit visas were authorized for the first five names on the Embassy’s alphabetical list, excluding Mrs. Hirshfield whose case is in a special category.70

For reasons which the Embassy is utterly at a loss to comprehend, some of the others whose names were not mentioned in the Soviet reply have now been orally given to understand that if they would now apply for passports, these would be granted and they, too, would be permitted to leave the U.S.S.R.

It is suggested that the Department may wish to communicate to Senator Green and Congressman Forand the substance of the above, in as much as it pertains to Mrs. Uskievich, in whom they have both expressed a deep interest. Reference Department’s telegram No. 1658 of July 21.

Kennan
  1. Mrs. Mela Borisovana Savine on June 18, 1943, had married Louis M. Hirshfield, a clerk in the American Embassy in Moscow, where she had also been employed. For the beginning of this case, see telegram 273, May 1, 1943, to Moscow, and telegram 422, May 10, 1943, from Moscow, Foreign Relations, 1943, vol. iii, pp. 518 and 524, respectively.↩