Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1940, General, Volume I

740.0011 European War 1939/4831: Telegram

The Chargé in the Soviet Union (Thurston) to the Secretary of State

Moscow, July 25, 1940—noon.
[Received 3:45 p.m.]

902. The British Military Attaché formerly assigned to Riga and now en route to London via the Soviet Union states that Soviet troops are believed to be distributed in the Baltic States as follows: Estonia: 150,000 men, 400 planes, and 500 tanks including 6 infantry divisions; Latvia: 200,000 men, 1000 tanks, 500 planes, including 12 divisions and 5 tank brigades; Lithuania: 200,000, including 1000 tanks, 500 planes including 6 divisions, 1 cavalry corps and 6 tank brigades. The Air Corps includes 4 bomber and 4 pursuit regiments.

Major Yeaton⁹⁷ has been advised by his British colleague that the War Office at London has informed the British Embassy in Moscow that the Germans are moving about 40 divisions into East Prussia and Poland.

Please inform the War Department.

Thurston

97. Maj. Ivan D. Yeaton, American Military Attaché in the Soviet Union.