Memorandum from Joseph P. Walshe to Eamon de Valera (Dublin)
(Secret)

M. Dobrzynski, the Polish Consul General, called to see me today. He had just returned from London where he had spent portion of a week consulting with his colleagues and with members of the Polish Government. He knew you would be interested to hear the general reactions of his people to the difficulties with which they are now faced.

M. Dobrzynski says that the Polish Government in London has no intention whatever of yielding on the principles, even though it is possible that some London Poles not members of the Government may go to Warsaw at the request of the British Government for the purpose of forming the type of Government contemplated at the Yalta Conference. The Poles in London could not understand why it was that Churchill and Roosevelt had given in so completely to Stalin and 'sold the pass' on Poland. If the Russian idea were carried out, the Polish State would be Polish only in name as the majority of the new Government would consist of persons who, though Polish-born, had received their entire training in Russia and had been made use of by the Russian Government in more than one country under different names as revolutionary agents. The one idea of these men was to spread the doctrine of Communism mingled with Pan-Slavic imperialism. There would be no hope for the Catholic Church in such a set-up as the Russians had definitely rejected any idea of an external allegiance. If there was to be a Pope, he must be a Russian Pope, and the only way to secure Russian dominance in religion was by setting up the Chief Patriarchate within Russian territory.

I tried to console M. Dobrzynski, who was naturally in a state of profound desolation about the future of his country, by telling him that the present phase of relations between the Big Three was bound to come to an end fairly soon. Stalin was making the pace too fast. He had outwitted the Allies in Serbia, Hungary and Roumania, and his campaign against the British in Greece was rather indecently public. One of these days he would commit himself to a seizure of the whole or part of Turkey and then the British and the Americans would be obliged to call a halt. At that moment, Poland would be listened to once more and the Allies would defend her interests when they realised that, in doing so, they were defending their own.

I tried to find out from M. Dobrzynski whether his more optimistic attitude after this visit to London was based on something more than the resolve of his people not to give in. After all, that was to be taken for granted.

He then told me that he had heard on the most reliable authority that the Allies were maintaining large armies in Persia, Iraq and Palestine, and his informants had told him that these armies were maintained for an eventuality which would be of natural interest to the Poles.