From the annual report of the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs of the RSFSR to the IX Congress of Soviets for 1920-1921.

USSR foreign policy documents. Volume 4. p. 630. Moscow. Gospolitizdat. 1960

Chapter one

PERIOD OF NEGOTIATIONS ON PEACE TREATIES AND AGREEMENTS

The end of last year was the moment of the final liquidation of the intervention on the territory of European Russia. The crushing blow of the Red Army, which knocked Wrangel out of the Crimea, was a turning point in the history of international relations of the Soviet Republic. The impression produced by this brilliant victory of Soviet weapons was enormous, and its effect on the international position of Soviet Russia was profound and lasting. In particular, the first time after the defeat of Wrangel was an extremely favorable moment for the development of international relations in Russia. If during 1920 peace treaties were concluded with the Baltic countries and Finland and a trade agreement with Sweden, [then] the period following the defeat of Wrangel was a time of significant expansion of our contractual relations.

During the last struggle of Wrangel in the Crimea and his evacuation to Constantinople, England emphasized the difference between her mode of action and the behavior of France. The evacuation of Wrangel in November 1920 was carried out by the French ships Waldeck-Rousseau and Provence, and the French radio press complained that British ships were not involved in the evacuation. The British fleet was ordered to accept only British subjects wishing to leave the Crimea. In reality, however, England's abstinence from helping Wrangel was not so unconditional. On October 27 in the House of Commons, Kenworthy asked the government whether Wrangel and his headquarters had been formally received on August 19 on the British warship Ramilli and whether this was in line with British government policy. The spokesman for the admiralty replied that he had no information. Leaving Crimea, Wrangel took with him the remnants of the Russian military and merchant fleet and after that began to openly sell the ships of the Russian merchant fleet in the ports of the Mediterranean and Adriatic seas. On December 19, the People's Commissar turned to the governments of the Entente and the Balkan states with a protest against the admission of these acts of international robbery and with a demand to take measures to stop the plundering of the property of the Russian people and to ensure the return of the merchant ships to us.

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Turkey

After the preliminary meetings with the Turkish delegates in Moscow in the summer of 1920, and the foundations of the future treaty were worked out, at the end of 1920 at the beginning of 1921 a difficult situation was created in the Middle East, culminating in the signing of the Moscow Russian-Turkish Treaty on March 16. In the West, this period is characterized by the establishment of contact between Angora and Constantinople and first by diplomatic preludes to the London Conference on Eastern Affairs, and then by the participation of Aigora and Constantinople together, in the East by the defeat of Dashnak Armenia by the troops of Karabekir Pasha and the greatly increased claims of Turkey, after which the compromise was followed by a lasting settlement of our relations with Turkey. All this time there was the closest contact between both governments,

On November 9, the composition of the Russian mission arrived in Angora, but the appointed plenipotentiary, Comrade Eliava, was detained by a serious illness. The affairs of the mission were temporarily in charge of the first secretary, Comrade Upmal, and later was sent to Kars and Angora on an emergency mission, comrade Mdivani. Turkish Delegate Extraordinary Bekir Sami Bey left Moscow on November 16, and soon afterwards the commander of the Western Front, Ali Fuad Pasha, who arrived in Moscow in February, was appointed Turkish ambassador to us.

As a result of a short but energetic offensive by the Turkish troops of Kazim Karabekir Pasha, in which both sides rejected our mediation, the Dashnak government was forced on December 2, after the first proclamation of Soviet Armenia, to conclude peace with Turkey in Alexandropol (Gyumri), according to which Armenia is only the area to the east of the Arpa-Chai River and north of the Araks remained, and even in this area, Armenia pledged not to have a standing army and to issue weapons to the Turks, the latter received the right to control and conduct military operations, but promised to help the Armenian government against external and internal enemies. The Russian Republic, which was in an alliance with the Armenian Soviet Republic that emerged at that time, did not recognize the Treaty of Alexandropol, which, moreover, was not ratified within the prescribed month.

On December 9, 1920, the NKID informs Angora that the RSFSR is happy to accept the proposal of the Turkish government to convene a conference in Moscow and considers it necessary for representatives of the Armenian and Azerbaijani Soviet governments to participate in this conference. At the conference in Moscow, representatives of the RSFSR appointed the Collegium of the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, which makes it unacceptable, according to the NKID in its note to the Turkish government, the proposal to convene the conference in Baku. On December 22, the Turkish government announced that General Ali Fuad Pasha, who will also be a member of the Turkish delegation, which will include People's Commissars Yusuf Kemal-bey and Riza Nur-Bey, has been appointed Turkey's envoy to Moscow.

On January 13, the People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs in a telegram to Ahmed Mukhtar welcomes the expected arrival of the Turkish delegation to Moscow.

On January 29 and 31, Bekir Sami-Bey in a radiogram informs about the correspondence with the Entente powers: The Government of the Grand National Assembly in Turkey is the only legitimate government of Turkey and is ready to send its delegates to a conference in Europe to negotiate the end of hostilities, provided that it is done direct offer to send those.

On January 31, 1921, Ahmed Mukhtar reported to the NKID the text of telegrams exchanged between the head of the government Mustafa Kemal and the Grand Vizier of Constantinople Tevfik Pasha. The Constantinople government agreed to a conference between the delegates of the Entente powers and the delegates of Turkey and Greece, scheduled in London for February 12, 1921, only on condition of the presence of delegates from Angora, which Tevfik Pasha asks to send. In his reply, Mustafa Kemal states that Angora will only consider proposals directly addressed to the Angora government, the only legitimate representative of the Turkish people.

February 11, 1921 Bekir Sami-bey announces the forthcoming departure of the Turkish delegation to London. In February, Ali Fuad Pasha, the Turkish ambassador to the RSFSR, and a delegation to conclude a peace treaty with the RSFSR, arrive in Moscow.

Simultaneous negotiations between Turkey and Russia and the Entente ended in opposite results in London and Moscow. The Russian-Turkish treaty on March 16 recognized the right of the eastern peoples to freedom and independence and to choose a form of government in accordance with their desires, consolidated friendly relations between the two countries, recognized the force of the Turkish National Act on January 28, 1920, left Kars, Ardahan and Artvin and established the autonomy of Batum with duty-free transit for Turkish goods and the protectorate of Azerbaijan over Nakhichevan. The treaty recognizes a mutual obligation to repatriate prisoners of war and provides for the conclusion of a trade and consular convention. The RSFSR undertakes not to recognize the regime of capitulations, renounces all special privileges and debts of tsarist Russia; questions about the straits are referred to the countries of the Black Sea coast.

Bekir Sami's London negotiations ended in failure due to the stubborn reluctance of the Entente to abandon the basic demands of the Treaty of Sevres, unacceptable for Turkey, although signed by the reactionary government of Constantinople of the Sultan. His agreements with France (March 7) and Italy (March 13) were not approved by the Grand National Assembly in Angora.

On March 29, the NKID announces the appointment of Comrade Natsarenus as plenipotentiary to Turkey and by May 5 receives Turkey's consent.