Office of the Historian

800.01B11 Registration—Ovakimian, Gaik (Dr.)/36

Memorandum by the Assistant Chief of the Division of European Affairs (Henderson)

[Washington,] July 12, 1941.

Lozovski has stated that the Soviet Government is prepared immediately to release from prison the following:

1.
Mrs. Habicht, the wife of an American citizen,
2.
Mr. Devenis (provided Devenis is still in Soviet hands), an American citizen,
3.
Mr. Cisiecki, an American citizen; and to grant exit visas to these three persons as well as to
4.
Mrs. Magidoff, the wife of an American citizen,
5.
Mr. Putkowski, an American citizen,
6.
Wagshal, a minor American citizen, who has been in Sovietoccupied territory with his mother, a Polish citizen.

He has proposed that in return the United States Government should drop the charges against Ovakimian, a Soviet official under arrest in this country, and the three defendants in the Bookniga case.

On July 8, Lozovski told Mr. Steinhardt that he had already given orders to release or grant exit visas to the persons above named. His statements have been confirmed orally by Mr. Oumansky to Mr. Welles.

It is impossible for this Government to make any concessions or to enter into any discussions with the Soviet Government with regard to the defendants in the Bookniga case since all these defendants are American citizens.

It is hoped, however, that the Department will have authority to inform the Soviet Government that if it will release the persons mentioned above who are in prison in the Soviet Union and permit them and the other persons above named to leave the Soviet Union [Page 988] and also allow other American citizens the names of whom might be submitted by Mr. Steinhardt to the Commissariat for Foreign Affairs to leave the Soviet Union, the charges against Ovakimian will be dropped on condition that he leave the country at the first opportunity.

Charges of espionage have not as yet been made against Ovakimian. He has been prosecuted for failure to register as an agent of a foreign principal. The United States Attorney in New York has recently asked if the Department would have any objection to the subpoenaing by his office of Amtorg employees and records in order to assist him in prosecuting the case against Ovakimian. The United States Attorney has indicated that he may be compelled to drop the case of espionage if he cannot obtain additional evidence through Amtorg channels.3

  1. It was believed that large quantities of the records of the Amtorg Trading Corporation had already been shipped out of the United States.↩