Deputy Minister Winiewicz, 'Record of Conversation with the Ambassador of Bulgaria on Disarmament Initiatives, the 31st of this Month'

51

January 31, deputy minister Winiewicz’s record of conversation

with the ambassador of Bulgaria on the Bulgarian disarmament initiative

Warsaw, January 31, 1958

Top secret

Record

of conversation with the ambassador of Bulgaria

on disarmament initiatives, the 31^st of this month

According to the instruction (morning conversation with comrade prime minister and comrade Naszkowski) I invited today comrade Boyev for 11.45 in order to reply to his intervention mode yesterday.^6[1]1 I thanked him for swift arrival and requested that he relay our remarks about the Bulgarian initiative to his government. I said:

1)We propose and advise that the initiative be postponed, at least by several weeks. At the moment, in our view, the whole thing is premature.

2) We plan to start new measures soon, which are related to our plan of the nuclear-free zone in Central Europe. We fear that both initiatives were to coincide, it would be detrimental to our plan and their plan.

3) As regards further steps concerning the Polish initiative, minister Rapacki is now in Moskow.^6[2]2 He notified minister Gromyko of our reservations about the Bulgarian initiative. Gromyko expressed his understanding and fully shared reservations and our position that the Bulgarian initiative is premature and ought to be postponed. He advised that we reach an agreement on his very point with the Bulgarian comrades.

4) We understand that the Bulgarian comrades will inform of our position the Albanian comrades as well, with whom they discussed their proposal, as Boyev told us yesterday.^6[3]3

Boyev, without any comment or polemic, noted all the salient points and assured me that he would relay them immediately, the more so that Sofia deems the matter very urgent.

/–/ Winiewicz

AMSZ, z. 23, w. 14, t. 163

⁶¹ See doc. no 47.

⁶² Minister Rapacki visited Moscow on January 28–February 1; see doc. no 62.

⁶³ The Polish side also informed the Albanian ambassador of its position. In a file note of February 6, director general reported: “On. Feb. 2 I informed the Albanian ambassador of our position regarding the initiative of Bulgaria and Albania (the nuclear-free zone). I used the same arguments as those in Winiewicz’s conversation with Boyev. He acknowledged receipt of the message and with certain understanding;” AMSZ, book. 23, item. 14, vol. 163.