Memorandum from Gromyko to Stalin, 30 September 1950, with draft cable from Gromyko to Shtykov

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the USSR

Comrade STALIN I.V.

The Ambassador of the USSR to the DPRK Comrade Shtykov has reported that as a result of air bombardments by the U.S. Air Force many enterprises of the DPRK have been ruined and are not in operation. At the present time, Koreans do not intend to rebuild these factories and plants.

In this situation Comrade Shtykov considers it expedient to send some of the Soviet specialists back to the Soviet Union and asks to be given the right to dispatch the Soviet experts back to the USSR regardless of the length of their stay in Korea upon consultations with the government of the DPRK.

Comr. Shtykov also requests that he be permitted, at his judgement and upon consultations with heads of the Soviet organizations in Korea, to evacuate some of their personnel working in Korea without whom
they can still continue to do their work.

The M[inistry of] F[oreign] A[ffairs of the] USSR considers it possible to recall
some of the Soviet specialists from the DPRK only if the initiative for their return to the Soviet Union were to come from the government of the DPRK.

As far as Comr. Shtykov's suggestion about the evacuation of the personnel of the Soviet organizations from the DPRK, the MFA [of the] USSR proposes that we maintain the existing procedures according to which the recall of personnel is to be done via the MFA of the USSR upon consultations with appropriate ministries and organizations of the USSR.

A draft [cable to Shtykov - AM] is attached.

I request Your consideration.

A. G R O M Y K O

30 September 1950

# 182-sh
1 copy

Attachment

TOP PRIORITY

To PYONGYANG,
To SOVIET AMBASSADOR

In connection with the present situation the evacuation of the Soviet specialists from Korea may take place only when the initiative for the return of any such specialists comes from the government of the DPRK. You should not display any initiative of your own in raising the issue of the evacuation of Soviet specialist before the Koreans do.

The return of the personnel of the Soviet organizations working in the DPRK to the Soviet Union should be done in the previously-established order, that is, via the MFA of the USSR upon consultations with appropriate ministries and organizations of the USSR.

You should inform the MFA of the USSR about each case of pending return of the Soviet specialists from Korea well in advance.

A. G r o m y k o