740.0011 E.W./10–344: Telegram
The Ambassador in Turkey (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State
[Received 11:45 p.m.]
1894. The Bulgarian Minister called to see me this morning and left with me an aide-mémoire which in translation reads as follows:
“The Bulgarian authorities have completely evacuated Thrace, Macedonia and Serbia and have turned over the administration to the local population. Certain detachments of the army which are, as is the case with the entire Bulgarian Army, under the command of Marshal Tolbukhin have remained in these territories not to maintain order there which is menaced by bitter fighting by the armed Greek partisans but solely and exclusively in connection with the military operations against Germany. Bulgaria has undertaken an engagement to enter into war against Germany. To carry out this engagement it must pursue certain purely military considerations with respect to the location of troops. Otherwise the Bulgarian troops would in reality withdraw behind the frontiers of Bulgaria thereby facilitating the retreat of the German troops. Up to this time, no common demand for such action has been presented on the part of the three Allied Powers. On the contrary [the Soviet?] command which it is considered in Bulgaria acts in the name of the Allies insists on offensive operations against the German troops in the direction of Bela Palanka-Nish, a condition which calls for a movement of Buigarian [Page 443] troops in Yugoslav territory. The maintenance in Thrace of certain detachments of Bulgarian troops is the result of purely military considerations. Thus a hasty retreat of all the Bulgarian troops in Thrace would expose to danger the rear of the Bulgarian Army operating in the west as well as the Russian troops moving across Bulgarian territory in view of the fact that in the absence for the time being of any other regular troops in Thrace there would be created the possibility for the German troops coming from the islands and Salonika to invade this region.
“The Bulgarian Government has never refused and will not refuse to carry out a common demand clearly expressed by the three Allied Powers relative to the withdrawal of all Bulgarian troops from Thrace and Yugoslavia. The presence of certain Bulgarian military detachments in Thrace and Yugoslavia is justified as has been pointed out above exclusively by the military operations undertaken against Germany and will not give any other advantage to Bulgaria. Dated Ankara, October 2, 1944.”
Repeated to London and Moscow.