Office of the Historian

740.00118 European War 1939/417: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Steinhardt)

Washington, July 21, 1941—10 p.m.

921. Your 1374, July 18, 5 p.m. You may inform Lozovski in case he raises the matter again that we are unable to enter into discussion with the Soviet authorities regarding the three former employees of Bookniga for the following reasons:

1.
The employees are American citizens; as far as the Department is aware, they are not married to Soviet citizens; and they have not been in the employ of the Soviet Government.
2.
They have already been found guilty of a crime against the United States and have been sentenced.
3.
They have not displayed any desire to depart from the United States for the Soviet Union.

[Page 993]

Since this matter was informally explained to Oumansky early last week, Lozovski’s renewed reference to the case is difficult for us to understand.

Welles