840.4016/2–1846: Telegram

The Minister in Hungary ( Schoenfeld ) to the Secretary of State

secret
priority

353. Mytel 214, Jan. 31.48 I mentioned to Foreign Minister today my hope that Hungarian Govt would see to it that mistaken statements attributing to Allies and particularly to American authorities alleged insistence on indiscriminate expulsion of Germans from Hungary be corrected promptly and that true facts re policy of US should not continue to be distorted.

Govt has not yet complied with directive of Chairman of ACC at instance of Gen. Key to correct wording of Hungarian decree governing deportation Germans. Balogh49 today expressed desire to receive from US copy of Voroshilov’s note to Prime Minister alleging [Page 143] that Marshal’s letter had disappeared from Prime Minister’s files and attributing disappearance to Deputy Prime Minister Rakosi.

Gyöngyösi told me today in response to my representation above reported that he was willing to set the record straight in form of a note taking official cognizance of our view repeatedly expressed that deportations should be on individual basis only.

Sent Dept repeated Berlin as 22.

schoenfeld
  1. Not printed; this telegram noted a protest by General Key against an implication on the part of the Hungarian government that the United States tended to favor expulsion of Germans from Hungary on the basis of the principle of collective guilt (840.4016/1–3146).
  2. István Balogh, Under Secretary to the Prime Minister.