Initiative Group formed for the Interim National Congress of Hungary

Memorandum from Official of the Third European Department of the People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs of the USSR I. M. Lavrov to V. G. Dekanozov with a Summary of G. M. Pushkin's Information about the Creation of the Initiative Group to Convene the Interim National Congress of Hungary in Debretsen ¹

Moscow

December 16, 1944

Express

Secret

TO DEPUTY OF PEOPLE'S COMMISSAR OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE USSR COMRADE V. G. DEKANOZOV

COMRADE PUSHKIN’S INFORMATION

In our conversation on the secure line that took place today, December 16 at 10 p.m., Comrade Pushkin informed me of the following.²

An initiative group for convening the Interim National Congress was created in Debretsen. It consisted of 17 people chaired by Governor of Debretsen Dr. Vashari Ishtvan. (Reference on him is enc1osed³) Along with the local figures, the following people joined the initiative group: General Colonel Bela Miklosh, General Colonel Yanosh Veresh, Gera⁴ Erne, Nady Imre, Burgomaster of Seged Valentini and others.

All members of the initiative group are currently in their towns and are conducting preparatory work to convene the Interim National Congress. According to Comrade Pushkin, they should return to Debretsen no later than December 20. The convention of the Interim National Congress is scheduled for December 22-23.

Comrade Pushkin recommends confirming professor of the Debretsen University St. Petri Kun Bela ⁵ as Chairman of the Interim National Congress. Professor St. Petri is an influential political figure of Debretsen and a well-known scientist in Hungary. He was a member of the Upper Chamber of the Hungarian Parliament by appointment. He did not engage in active political work in the last three years. For some time he led the governmental party in Debretsen. St. Petri knows very little about the Soviet Union, but he is trying to learn about it. In his conversation with Pushkin, he stated that it was impossible to find objective literature about the Soviet Union in Hungary, and that he did not read the propaganda literature.

Pushkin recommends Professor Shanta Gal'man of the Debretsen University to the position of Deputy Chairman of the Interim National Congress. He is a prominent scientist in the field of medicine, up until now was not involved in politics and never belonged to any party. He is 45 years old. His wife knows the Soviet Union very well and is very close to us. He is very friendly to the Soviet Union. Catholic.

Pushkin recommends to confirm Yuhas Nady as Second Deputy Chairman of the Interim National Congress. He was the Minister of Justice in the Karoli cabinet in 1919. He is a respected political figure. He began to work very actively in the initiative group. He is very positively inclined toward the Soviet Union and could be subsequently included in the cabinet.

Pushkin asked to pass on to you that the preparatory work for the convention of the Interim National Congress is going well. The political situation is favorable for this work. The Hungarian public welcomes the steps being taken for convening of the Interim National Congress with enthusiasm.

Pushkin mentioned that he began to send information beginning on December 12, and that apparently the military organs through which he was sending it are delaying it.

Acting Assistant to the Head of the Third European Department

I LAVROV

1. Copies distributed to V. Dekanozov, A. Vyshinsky, and to the files. The cover letter enclosed with the document carries V. Dekanozov's resolution that he wrote after reading the information: "We should recommend to Comrades Susaikov and Pushkin that we need to have an absolutely reliable person as Deputy Chairman of the Interim National Congress, in order to be able to influence the work of the Congress in its entirety" (Foreign Policy Archive of the Russian Federation, Fond 07. finding aid 5 II 43, file 93, p. 6).

2. In December 1944, G. M. Pushkin took part in the preparation and work of the first session of the Interim National Congress of Hungary as an observer on the NKID USSR instructions. Beginning from January 1945, he became a political adviser of the Allied Control Commission in Hungary.

3. The reference is not being published

4. As in the original. Should be Gere

5. B. Zhedeni was elected Chairman of the National Congress