Office of the Historian

740.00119 Control (Hungary)/11–2345: Telegram

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

Washington, December 1, 1945—7 p.m.

757. Dept suggests that at next meeting of ACC Gen Key inform Voroshilov that US Govt finds it difficult to understand his action in threatening to remove from agenda question of reduction of Hungarian Army unless Brit and US Reps would give immediate concurrence on spot (Key’s tel Z–1172 Nov 16 and Mistel 957 Nov 23) and in issuing orders without waiting for expression of US views or permitting study of technical aspects by staffs of three Reps. We regard Voroshilov’s action as particularly unfortunate since US views were made available by tel (Dept’s 684 Nov 16) sent day following ACC meeting and are in substantial agreement with Soviet views. It is regretted that on this question, which is of concern to US as armistice signatory and is related to terms of future peace treaty with Hungary, Marshal Voroshilov did not take opportunity to seek tripartite agreement before issuance of order to Hungarian Govt.

For your and Gen Key’s info, Dept and War Dept, which has approved present tel, consider 25,000 (Key’s tels Z–114783 and Z–1172) reasonable figure for aggregate strength of Hungarian Army in interim period as well as of permanent force to be authorized by peace treaty.

Sent Budapest rptd Moscow as 2430.

Byrnes
  1. Telegram Z-1147, November 14, 1945, from General Key to the War Department, not printed. It was in answer to telegram Warx 80529, November 1, not printed, in which the War Department requested General Key’s recommendations on the nature of the military clauses for a Hungarian peace treaty. In his reply, General Key stated that although he filed a protest with Marshal Voroshilov on the methods used in presenting the directive to the Hungarian Government regarding the reduction in army strength, the proposed reduction to 25,000 men was probably appropriate and should be accepted as the strength of the permanent force to be authorized in a peace treaty. (Budapest Legation File: File 820 Hungarian Army)↩