862.00/9–1746: Telegram
The Ambassador in Poland (Lane) to the Secretary of State
[Received September 19—10:14 a.m.]
1431. For the Secretary. General reaction of Poles with whom we have spoken re your Stuttgart reference to Polish western boundaries11 appears with few exceptions to follow Polish Government line of criticism. Government officials say with conviction that despite political differences between parties all Poles in agreement on question of western boundaries and it is true that all party leaders, including Mikolajczyk and Popiel, advised their followers to vote yes on question 3 (re retention of Oder-Neisse border) in June 30 referendum. Innate nationalistic feeling of Pole, regardless of party, as well as desire to be compensated for loss Wilna and Lwow largely responsible but, naturally, Communists have taken full advantage to endeavor discredit you with the Poles.
Emotions run from violent attacks on you to milder expressions of hurt feelings that Poland after almost 6 years Nazi occupation and [Page 495] destruction of Warsaw should now receive setback from US, always regarded as friend by almost all Poles. Fact that your remarks reiterated substance Potsdam provisions which were applauded by Government press at time of Potsdam Conference, apparently not appreciated by general public.
Those who applaud your remarks re Poland, seem primarily motivated by belief that it was necessary to give strong warning to Soviet Union that Potsdam Decision must be fulfilled by all parties thereto. Even some of these, however, who are generally friendly towards US Government express regret at timing of speech, feeling that coming prior to meeting of KRN September 20, interests of Mikolajczyk and PSL will be injured despite Mikolajczyk’s advocacy of Polish retention western territories.12
Vice Consul at Krakow where pro-US anti-Communistic feeling has been consistently high report[s] concern over speech on following grounds: (1) Too lenient attitude towards Germany which may again be military danger to Poland; (2) inability to comprehend speech in view of our having permitted transfer of Germans from western lands and (3) present policy of US will result in increase of influence of Soviet Union in Poland and in serious decline of our prestige.
In conversations I have generally followed line which I took in talk with Olszewski (mytel 1363, September 613). More detailed explanations may be necessary, however, in order to allay feeling which subjective attitude of Poles, encouraged by Soviet guided government, exaggerates that your address was primarily intended as attack on Poland. I should therefore be grateful for any elaboration of your views with respect to Poland which you may wish to give me for my guidance in further talks which I may have with Polish officials and others.
Regardless of the ephemeral irritation, which I am impelled to report, your remarks have provoked in Poland, I am confident the Poles as a people have greater confidence in our friendship than in that of any other nation.
Sent to Paris as 294; to Moscow as 167; to London as 207.
- For text of the address setting forth United States policy on Germany, delivered by the Secretary of State at Stuttgart, Germany, on September 6, 1946, see Department of State Bulletin, September 15, 1946, p. 496.↩
- Mikolajczyk’s public statement protesting Secretary Byrnes’ address is described in Stanislaw Mikolajczyk, The Rape of Poland: Pattern of Soviet Aggression (New York and Toronto, McGraw–Hill Book Company, Inc., 1948), pp. 171–172.↩
- Not printed; it reported on Lane’s conversation with Olszewski on September 6 (862.00/9–646). For his account of this conversation, see Lane, I Saw Poland Betrayed, pp. 260–261.↩