Office of the Historian

761.91/1–445: Telegram

The Ambassador in Iran (Morris) to the Secretary of State

Tehran, January 4, 1945—5 p.m.
[Received January 5—4:20 p.m.]

6. Colonel Schwarzkopf head of American Military Mission to Iran Gendarmerie2 yesterday informed me that on December 20 a clash occurred at Shahi in Mazanderan between striking workers in Iranian Government textile mill and gendarmes assigned as guards for factory. Gendarmes fired over heads of crowd without injuring anyone. Immediately afterward Soviet troops entered factory, arrested gendarme commander and disarmed gendarmes and marched them on foot from Shahi to Sari during which gendarmes were exposed to insults and missiles of civilians. Reason given for this Soviet action was asserted wounding of Soviet soldier by fire of gendarmes which Schwarzkopf says was impossible under circumstances.3

Soviet Embassy has protested to Iranian Foreign Office against alleged unfriendly action of gendarmes to which Iranians have replied with counter protest against interference by Soviet troops with Iranian forces. Commission has been sent to make investigation jointly with Soviet authorities.

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Schwarzkopf considers Russian action as interference with accomplishment of his mission. I offered to go with him to see Soviet Ambassador4 to sound out Russian attitude but Minister of Interior5 has since informed him that Iranian Government is taking matter up strongly and prefers that no outside action be taken at this time.

Full text of Schwarzkopf report to me being forwarded by mail.6

Sent to Department, repeated to Moscow.

Morris
  1. For documentation on this mission ,see pp. 526–538, passim.↩
  2. For further instances of Soviet interference with the work of the Iranian gendarmerie, see despatch 292, May 12, from Tehran, p. 527.↩
  3. Mikhail Alexeyvich Maximov.↩
  4. Mohammad Soruri.↩
  5. Copy of report of January 1, 1945, transmitted to the Department in despatch 171, January 5, from Tehran. The despatch stated: “Colonel Schwarzkopf’s information, of course, is derived entirely from Iranian sources, which leaves some possibility that the facts may have suffered distortion in transmission. However, on its face the incident appears to be a serious instance of unwarranted Soviet interference in a purely internal Iranian affair.” (761.91/1–545)↩