| Moscow Conference (1941) Codename: Caviar | |
|---|---|
| Host country | USSR |
| Date | 29 September 1941 – 1 October 1941 |
| Cities | Moscow |
| Venues | Spiridonovka Palace |
| Participants |
|
| Chair | Vyacheslav Molotov |
| Follows | Second Inter-Allied Meeting |
| Precedes | Arcadia Conference |
| Key points | |
Signing of the First Protocol | |
TheFirst Moscow Conference (Codename: Caviar) ofWorld War II took place from September 29, 1941 to October 1, 1941.[1][2]
The initial contact with theUSSR came with PresidentialEnvoy and Director of theLend-Lease programmeHarry Hopkins with Soviet leaderJoseph Stalin in Moscow.[2]
On 30 July 1941 Hopkins briefed journalists atSpaso House, the US Embassy residence. At 20.00, he was described as looking 'pale and tired' and speaking 'faintly, his voice dwindling away at times to an inaudible mumble'. Hopkins confirmed he had spoken with Stalin and had informed the Soviet leader of President Roosevelt's admiration for the Russian resistance toOperation Barbarossa the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Hopkins added that he had told Stalin of the United States' resolve to support the USSR with supplies. Stalin thanked Hopkins and told him the confidence in his country would not be misplaced.[2]
The pair met again at 18.00 the following day at theKremlin. Hopkins once more returned to Spaso House and brief the press. He described how pleasantries were done away with and they got down to specifics. Hopkins added,
I have nothing to add to what I said the other day, other than that my short visit here has given me even more confidence that Hitler is going to lose.
— Harry Hopkins[2]
Hopkins concluded his business and flew back to London on Friday 1 August.[2]
The Moscow conference was proposed following the meeting between British Prime Minister,Winston Churchill, and USPresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt atPlacentia Bay.[3] A joint message was sent to from Churchill and Roosevelt to Joseph Stalin with the proposal. It was delivered to Stalin on August 15 at 18.00 by US AmbassadorLaurence Steinhardt and British Ambassador SirStafford Cripps. They handed over identical copies signed by Roosevelt and Churchill. Stalin immediately dictated a reply for presentation to the ambassadors giving his agreement to the proposal.
An announcement onRadio Moscow said,
Comrade Stalin requested the American Ambassador (Laurence Steinhardt) and the British Ambassador (Sir Stafford Cripps) to convey to President Roosevelt and Mr. Churchill respectively the heartfelt thanks of the peoples of the Soviet Union and of the Soviet Government for their readiness to aid the U.S.S.R. in its war of liberation against Hitlerite Germany.
— Radio Moscow[3]
The delegates flew into Moscow on 28 September. They were greeted byVice-CommissarAndrei Vyshinsky and the staffs of the British and US embassies.[2]W. Averell Harriman representing theUnited States andLord Beaverbrook representing theUnited Kingdom met withVyacheslav Molotov (Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs) presiding.[1]
Their respective ambassadors took the delegates to meet Stalin on the same evening. Molotov was also present along withMaxim Litvinov who was attending as a delegate acted astranslator.[2] The conference opened on 29 September at the residence of the Foreign Commissariat, theSpiridonovka Palace. Following a closed session an official communique was released, prepared byQuentin Reynolds (ofCollier's magazine) andVernon Bartlett MP (News Chronicle andBBC).[2]
The formal opening of the Three-Power Moscow Conference took place this morning under the presidency of Molotov. In his opening address he paid high tribute to Lord Beaverbrook and to Mr. Averell Harriman. 'I hope,' he said, 'that the conference will be guided by the high ideals expressed by President Roosevelt and Mr. Churchill on August 15. I would suggest that today we appoint six committees – army, navy, aviation, transport, raw materials, and medical supplies. Time is precious. Let us get to work.'
— excerpt from the official conference communique
This main session lasted for 30 minutes but delegations appointed members for the committees who went into immediate session. They were instructed to have reports on the Soviet requirements ready by the morning of 3 October.[2] The conference reconvened on 1 October, two days ahead of schedule, for the second and final meeting of the main delegations.[2] The agreement signed, known as the First Protocol, was signed on 1 October 1941. The agreement was set to run until June 1942. It promised the Soviet Union 400 aircraft, 500 tanks and 10,000 trucks a month in addition to other supplies.[4]
A joint statement was issued by Lord Beaverbrook and Avril Harriman, separate from the conference communique. The closing paragraph stated,
In concluding its session the conference adheres to the resolution of the three governments that, after the final annihilation of Nazi tyranny, a peace will be established which will enable the world to live in security in its own territory in conditions free from fear or need
— Beaverbrook/Harriman Joint Statement[2]
The delegates departed by Douglas passenger planes on 3 October where they boarded theHalcyon-classminesweeper HMS Harrier in the White Sea.Harrier took them to meet theCounty-classcruiserHMS London to transfer the party at sea. A gangplank was passed between the two ships and AmericanAdmiralWilliam Standley crossed first. Lord Beaverbrook crossed with a rope around his waist in case he fell. The ships separated andLondon called via loudspeaker "Well done, Harrier, Well done".[2]
In a speech of 6 November 1941 to mark the 24th anniversary of theOctober Revolution Joseph Stalin said,
... the three power conference in Moscow with the participation of Mr. [Lord] Beaverbrook, the representative of Great Britain, and Mr. Harriman, representative of the United States of America, decided upon systematic assistance to our country with tanks and airplanes. As is well known we have already begun to receive tanks and airplanes on the basis of this decision. Even previously Great Britain had guaranteed the supply to our country of deficit materials such as aluminum, lead, tin, nickel, and rubber. If to this is added the fact that a few days ago the United States of America decided to grant a loan of one billion dollars to the Soviet Union, one can say with assurance that the coalition of the United States of America, Great Britain and the U. S. S. R., is a reality (stormy applause) which is increasing and will increase for the good of our common cause.
— Joseph Stalin[5]
Aside from the main events of the conference there was an incident regarding the purchase ofcaviar for Prime Minister Churchill. Philip Jordan, reporting for the News Chronicle from the news conference. His despatches were also carried byThe Times and Lord Beaverbrook's ownDaily Express.[2] Jordan learned from an undisclosed source that Lord Beaverbrook had sent an employee to buy £25GBP (approximately $100USD) for the Prime Minister. Churchill read the report andtelegraphed Lord Beaverbrook, who in turn asked Jordan about the matter. Jordan refused to name his source and Beaverbrook accused younger officials from theBritish Embassy of leaking information.[2] It was true that Churchill had ordered the caviar the amount was exaggerated. It was feared that it would reflect badly that such a large quantity of caviar was purchased at a time ofrationing.[2]
