860C.01/12–644
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Chargé to the Polish Government in Exile (Schoenfeld)18
I paid my initial call on the new Polish Prime Minister, Mr. Arciszewski, at 3:15 this afternoon. Mr. Victor Padowski, Chief of the American Section of the Polish Foreign Office, was also present. As the Prime Minister speaks only Polish and Russian, Mr. Padowski acted as interpreter.
Mr. Arciszewski said that he was most pleased to receive the representative of the United States Government. Polish opinion had the greatest regard for President Roosevelt. He personally had been a witness in Poland to the effect there of the President’s statements and pronouncements during the war. Opinion in Poland had derived particular [Page 1341] encouragement from the President’s statement that Poland in this war had been an inspiration to other nations, and from the Atlantic Charter. I told him that I knew the President took a deep interest in Poland and in a happy issue from the war for it.
Mr. Arciszewski referred to the fact that he had come from Poland only a few months ago and that up till then he had been an active participant in the Polish Underground Movement. He gave an extended account of its organization. The Polish Underground Army, he said, had been organized immediately after the defeat in 1939. From the moment of the German attack on Russia it had cooperated with the Soviet forces. It had engaged in extensive sabotage behind the German lines when the Russians were being driven eastward. Later, when the German advance had been stayed and the Russians were advancing in Poland, the Polish Underground forces had cooperated actively with them. The units of the Underground Army had been ordered to reveal themselves to the advancing Soviet forces and to offer to place themselves under the Soviet Commander while retaining their allegiance to the Polish Government in London. Unfortunately their action had not been received in the same spirit and there had been arrests, deportations and even executions. If, he continued, the Soviet Government had accepted the Polish offer, the Polish Underground Army could have placed at its disposal an organized force of 300,000 men. Those instructions regarding cooperation were still in effect.
The Underground Political Organization, he said, was the counterpart of the Government in London. It extended throughout the country and into the small villages. The Germans had never been able to break it down or secure Polish collaboration. They had repeatedly approached important Polish leaders in an effort to persuade them to head a Quisling Government. They had, for example, approached Prince Radziwill, former Chairman of the Committee of Foreign Relations of the Polish Parliament. He had refused. They had approached Mr. Lipski, former Polish Ambassador in Berlin. He had refused. They had approached many others and all had refused.
I enquired whether the rising in Warsaw had seriously disrupted the Underground Organization. Mr. Arciszewski said that two heads of Departments (that is Underground Ministries) and a member of the Council of National Unity had been killed and various lesser officials, but the majority of leaders had escaped. Communications had become more difficult than formerly, in part because the radio transmitters which had to be operated secretly had in some instances been captured or destroyed. But communications had been restored and the Polish Government in London was in touch with the Underground leaders.
[Page 1342]Speaking of his Government’s policy, Mr. Arciszewski said that the present Polish Government intended to carry forward the policies pursued by General Sikorski19 and Mr. Mikolajczyk. There were some persons who criticized certain members of the Government as being anti-Russian. There were, for example, Mr. Berezowski of the National Democratic Party and Professor Folkierski20 of the Christian Labor Party. These accusations were unjustified. Both of the parties in question had signified their approval of the proposals submitted to Moscow in August by Mr. Mikolajczyk. They had also supported the declarations of policy of August 15, 1943 and March 1944 which looked toward the introduction of various liberal measures such as revision of the Constitution, Agrarian reform, and nationalization of certain key industries. These measures were to be taken when free conditions were restored in Poland. Indeed, all four of the principal parties and minor groups had given their approval. The only exception was the Polish Workers Party which was the communist group.
Mr. Arciszewski did not enter upon a comprehensive discussion of the proposals for a settlement of Soviet-Polish difficulties as advanced recently at the Moscow meeting. He made no mention whatever of the Curzon Line. He referred, however, to the question of territorial adjustments in the west and said that he felt Poland should not take German territory to the point which would render impossible its relations with Germany for all the future and in consequence convert it into a prisoner of Russia. Poland should have East Prussia and Silesia, but he questioned the wisdom of taking Stettin and Breslau.
He spoke of the Lublin Committee and asserted that it did not represent public opinion in Poland. Bierut and Morawski, two of its principal members, were communist agents who prior to the Soviet Union’s entry into the war had been writing articles critical of Great Britain and charging it with being engaged in an imperialist war. He recalled that in 1920 a similar committee had been set up under Soviet auspices at Bialystock. He felt that just as that Committee had not gained the support of Polish opinion, so the Lublin Committee could not gain it.
Mr. Arciszewski said that his own Government had received the approval of the principal parties in Poland. While members of the Peasant Party were not included in his Cabinet, he had received through Mr. Kulerski a message from the Peasant Party in Poland indicating its support of the present Government (Mr. Kulerski is [Page 1343] Secretary of the Polish National Council in London and an official of the Peasant Party). He was also in friendly relations with Mr. Mikolajczyk who had assured him of support. He hoped that in time the Peasant Party would take over the Ministries which were now held in an interim capacity by other Ministers.
Mr. Arciszewski went on to say that Poland desired good relations with its eastern neighbour. It had made strong efforts to arrive at an understanding with Russia. This would continue to be the policy of the present Government. The Russians had, however, treated Poland worse than if it were an enemy state. Poland had lost six millions of its people through the war. Of its three and a half million Jews, perhaps 160,000 remained. As the country which had been the first to take the burden of the German attack and had fought with all its means throughout the war, the Polish Government felt that it was entitled to be represented and heard at the Peace Conference.
In conclusion Mr. Arciszewski brought up the question of possible supplies from UNRRA21 for Poles in France. I suggested that this would seem to be a matter that should be taken up directly with the UNRRA offices here. It was of course an independent organization. I remarked that Governor Lehman22 had been in London recently and that I had arranged an interview for him with the former Prime Minister, Mr. Mikolajczyk. I understood Governor Lehman planned to return to London before long and if so I should be glad to mention the matter to him. Mr. Arciszewski said that he would like to see Governor Lehman if he should return to London.
I expressed my appreciation to Mr. Arciszewski for being so generous with his time. I expressed the hope that he would at all times feel disposed to keep me abreast of developments and assured him of my interest in being of any service that I properly could.
- Sent to the Department as enclosure to despatch 695, December 6, from the Chargé to the Polish Government in Exile; received December 21.↩
- Gen. Wladyslaw Sikorski, former Prime Minister of the Polish Government in Exile, killed in an airplane accident at Gibraltar on July 4, 1943.↩
- Wladyslaw Folkierski, Minister of Preparatory Work concerning the Peace Conference, and Minister of Education and Religious Affairs in the Arciszewski Cabinet.↩
- United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration.↩
- Herbert H. Lehman, former Governor of New York, Director General of UNRRA.↩