Memorandum, Why Are the Russians Slow to Trust the Western Powers?

WHY ARE THE RUSSIANS SLOW TO TRUST THE WESTERN POWERS? Many people feel that the Russians are unduly slow about trusting us, that comradeship in arms should end old suspicions. This difficulty cannot be understood without trying to place ourselves in the position of the Soviet leaders, to see their side and explain it to our people. As time goes on we may find out that the Russian Government will not permit our side of things to be presented to their people. If this is true, serious trouble is likely to develop. But, in any event, we must be very sure that we have done our best to avoid it. NATIONAL ARCHIVES I. Many Historic Expressions of Western Hostility to Red Russia. As the Russian leaders are likely to see it, they had little reason to trust the West, prior to the German attack on them. After the Red revolt in 1917 there were at least four major attempts of the Tsarist forces to re-conquer Russia -- those led by Kolchack in Siberia, Yudenitch in the North, Denekin and Wrangel in the Southo These were major wars, usually mustering 500,000 men, who were largely armed and supplied by the British and French. The Polish attack on Russia in 1920 was the last of the series of wars on Red Russia supported by the West. All of these failed but a basis was laid for the Soviet belief that Russia had to go out and conquer the capitalist world (via world revolution) or the capitalist powers would close in on Russia again. This fate seemed imminent to the Russians after Japan broke loose in Manchuria and Hitler rose to power in Germany. Therefore, Moscow stopped reviling the League of Nations and approached it by way of the World Disarmament Conference.