Office of the Historian

860C.01/7–2644: Telegram

The Chargé to the Polish Government in Exile (Schoenfeld) to the Secretary of State

London, July 26, 1944—8 p.m.
[Received July 26—7:02 p.m.]

Polish Series 68. For the Secretary and Under Secretary. Romer tells me that as a result of the meeting with Churchill last evening (my 66, July 25)47 Mikolajczyk, Professor Grabski and he have decided [Page 1299] to go to Moscow. According to Homer they are going without any pre-conditions either positive or negative. They do not plan to meet first with representatives of the Polish Committee of National Liberation48 as suggested by Stalin. They regard this reference in his wire to Churchill as only a suggestion and not as a condition.

They leave London tonight by plane; stop-off briefly at Gibraltar and then continue on to Tehran. They hope their Soviet visas will be awaiting them there and that they can then continue on to Moscow.

Romer states British Foreign Office is advising its Embassy in Moscow of their coming. He hopes Ambassador Harriman may also be informed and asked to extend to them such facilities as may be practicable.

Romer referred to the answer to a question which Mr. Eden was making in the House of Commons today regarding the British Government’s recognition of the Polish Government in London49 and suggested that if some similar reference were possible from the American side he believed this would be helpful.

[Schoenfeld]

  1. This telegram read as follows:

    “Romer tells me Churchill telegraphed Stalin several days ago saying that if Mikolajczyk should desire to go to Moscow, Churchill hoped Stalin would receive him. Stalin has replied that he would receive Mikolajczyk but suggests latter talk first with the new Polish Committee of National Liberation.

    “Romer states he and Mikolajczyk are seeing Churchill this evening about the question. He will let me know the result tomorrow.” (860C.01/7–2544)

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  2. The Polish Committee of National Liberation had been established in Kholm (Chelm) by a decree of July 21, 1944, by the National People’s Council of Poland. It soon transferred its activities to Lublin. See telegram 2736, July 24, from Moscow, p. 1425.↩
  3. Mr. Eden’s remarks were to the effect that the British Government continued to recognize the Polish Government in Exile and were doing all in their power to further an early solution of the Polish-Soviet problem.↩