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Volume 3 Far East Story Chapter 534 How can three days be enough?

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    July 16, 1918, 19:30, large conference room of Samara City Hall on the Volga River

    "Vasily Nikolayevich, the four principles you proposed are barely acceptable, but how do we know that the Soviet Red Army prisoners of war voluntarily stayed to join the Volga Federation instead of being killed in the prisoner-of-war camp?  What about those who were forced to join by your bayonets and machine guns?¡±

    Chicherin, the Soviet People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, pondered for a long time the four principles for the repatriation of prisoners of war proposed by Pepelyaev, and finally raised his head and raised this question.

    "Georgi Vasilyevich, although the Volga Federation has just been established, it cannot be established without trust. If we say we have an armistice with you, we will stop the war, and if we say we recognize the demarcation of boundaries, we will recognize each other. For this reason, we even gave up the war with you.  With the support of the All-Russian Provisional Government of His Excellency Erchak, don¡¯t you think we are a model of what we preach?¡±

    "Since we have promised to repatriate prisoners of war, the Soviet Red Army prisoners of war in the prisoner-of-war camps can freely choose to stay or stay when they are repatriated, then we must allow them to choose freely. The so-called forceful melons are not sweet. Don't think that we care less about those prisoners of war.  Prisoners of war born as Bolsheviks may turn out to be a nuisance if they are kept alive!

    We do this in a humanitarian spirit and treat them as soldiers rather than butchers. Otherwise, with the blood of Russians on their hands during the Soviet Red Army's purge and suppression, these prisoners of war would have been shot to fill the moat.  Do we need to build so many prisoner-of-war camps to feed them and feed them?

    Nearly one-third of these prisoners of war are still lightly or seriously wounded. Do you know how much logistical pressure just medicine and food supply will put on us?  This place is more than 7,000 kilometers away from China. Have you ever calculated how much coal and water is burned on the train for every grain shipped here?  "

    Pepelyaev¡¯s diplomatic talents were fully displayed at this time. Of course, this was also based on the good cards given to him by the coalition forces and the Chinese king.

    In fact, this guy himself felt that when he followed Kolchak as Prime Minister of the miserable All-Russian Provisional Government, he was like a tortoise everywhere, begging grandpa and grandma to find ways to get sponsorship, food and arms, and he didn't stop watching it.  The faces of the various factions, including the Allied ministers in Russia, Britain, France, the United States, and Japan, did not take them seriously at all.

    But since Vasily Nikolayevich Pepelyaev joined the Ufa coalition and the Chinese king, everything seems to have been painstaking. Whatever he does, he gets what he wants, and the Chinese king of the coalition can do anything.  , created a gorgeous and huge stage for myself to show off my skills. The conditions may not be difficult, and the workload may not be light, but the work is smooth and refreshing.

    For example, at this moment, a veteran diplomat and negotiator like Chicherin, the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union, looked stern and inwardly in front of him, but in the end he struggled and had nothing to do, so he had to bow his head obediently.  the moral high ground.

    "Vasily Nikolayevich, I can agree to your four principles for the repatriation of prisoners of war on behalf of Moscow. However, when the prisoners of war are repatriated and they are free to choose whether to stay or go, we need to send representatives to supervise. You see, this is also a diplomatic norm.  At least our people have to confirm that the prisoners of war did choose to stay and stay voluntarily instead of being threatened, intimidated and forced, right? "

    Chicherin rolled his eyes and settled for the next best thing, asking representatives from both sides to be present at the same time to jointly supervise the selection of prisoners of war for repatriation.

    "Georgi Vasilyevich, your request is not too much, but I cannot agree to it. Maybe you have heard a story, that is, in the first stage of the Battle of Ufa, during the attack and defense under the city of Ufa, you  The three attacking infantry divisions were trapped in a dilemma in the first trench vacated by our side. Later, nearly 10,000 Soviet Red Army soldiers laid down their weapons and surrendered, but that was after killing almost all of them and forcing them to make unnecessary sacrifices.  After political commissars at all levels!¡±

    Pepelyaev looked Chicherin squarely in the eyes, his tone was calm with a hint of ridicule and ridicule.

    "Well, Vasily Nikolayevich, the political commissar system is the guarantee for our Soviet Red Army to ensure the ideological purity of the Bolshevik team and enhance the team's cohesion and combat effectiveness. Political commissars at all levels in the Soviet Red Army are the strongest Bolsheviks.  And I think the example you gave is cruel and has nothing to do with the issue of repatriation of prisoners of war!" The Soviet People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs was exposed and became a little angry.

    "Georgi Vasilyevich, I am not giving this example to deliberately embarrass you. What could be more embarrassing than the annihilation of all five of your armies, including Slavin, Yegorov, and Mashain?  Is it more embarrassing for you to have the commanders of the four armies, Rzhevsky and their political commissars captured together, not to mention dozens of division commanders and division political commissars!¡±

    ¡°I just want to tell you that the presence of Soviet Russian representatives at the scene of repatriation of prisoners of war will affect the freedom and justice of the repatriation. Those Soviet Russian prisoners of war will be worried about your representatives.¡±Members of the Cheka, and once they make the choice to stay and be loyal to the Volga Federation, your representatives are likely to be recorded on record and go back to persecute their families and relatives!  Do you know how much the gloomy eyes of the Cheka and the political commissars devastated and pressured the hearts of the Soviet Red Army soldiers?  "

    Pepelyaev stared into Chicherin¡¯s eyes and refused to give in, firmly disagreeing with the presence of Soviet representatives at the scene of the selection of repatriation of prisoners of war.

    "Vasily Nikolayevich, you said that I can't go back and explain to Moscow, because there is no way to prove that the prisoners of war voluntarily stayed in the Volga Federation instead of making a choice against their will under your bayonets and guns. This matter  It doesn't make sense anywhere. Without supervision, how can we ensure that the selection of prisoners of war is fair and free?" Chicherin couldn't help shouting, obviously feeling that Pepelyayev was going too far.

    "Georgi Vasilyevich, to be honest, you don't understand the temper of the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces. What he said, one is one, and two is two. Regarding the repatriation of prisoners of war, we said that prisoners of war should be given the right to make free choices.  , that is, we are willing to give them this right.

    Don¡¯t you understand?  We don¡¯t need to prove this to you at all. We don¡¯t need to be responsible for you. We need to be responsible for every prisoner of war who is willing to stay. As for those who are determined to return to the left bank of the Volga River and share their family¡¯s fields with hunger.  You are so stubborn in pursuing your doctrine and career because of your own family members. We wish we could have sent them away one day earlier!  "

    "Of course, I forgot to tell you just now that prisoners of war are free to choose to stay or go, but every prisoner of war who chooses to return to Soviet Russia cannot go back so easily. The Soviet Russian government has to pay a price to bring them back.  To redeem them, you can use our prisoners of war. Of course, you don¡¯t have them at the moment. You can¡¯t use Kolchak¡¯s prisoners of war or Denikin¡¯s prisoners of war. At least my Volga Federal Autonomous Government is between you and Kolcha.  What is maintained between grams is neutrality.

    In any case, the Soviet Russian government had to pay a price to bring back the prisoners of war who were willing to go back. Although we won the Battle of Ufa, we paid a huge price. Not counting the food and ammunition consumed, the casualties were quite large, and the entire  Because of your attack on the Great Plains of Ufa, all the people have fled. This summer there is simply no harvest. We don¡¯t even know what we will eat when winter comes. For the Soviet Red Army prisoners of war in the prison camps, they have to pay for it.  The price cannot be put back in vain!  "

    Pepeliyaev's powerful and overbearing words insisted that the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union was so angry that one Buddha was born and two Buddhas were raised to heaven. Upon hearing this, Chicherin jumped up from the sofa with a cry and pointed at Pepelli with trembling hands.  Yaev said,

    "You you Vasily Nikolayevich, you can't act like this. I just said that repatriating prisoners of war after a good peace treaty is signed is an inevitable process. We have been talking for a long time, and I have agreed to it.  "Those four principles you proposed, why did you suddenly say that these prisoners of war who voluntarily go back have to be redeemed by us with people or things before they can be taken away? Aren't you being unreasonable and just trying to make us happy?" Chichelin was angry.  His face turned blue and white, and he was breathing heavily.

    "Georgi Vasilyevich, if it weren't for the fact that you are from a noble family when we first met, and your conversational knowledge and character are so-so, I would have kicked you out if you yelled at me like that.  This is the city hall. Do you believe that my team will be able to cross the Volga River and capture Syzran tomorrow?

    "Don't talk about Saratov Tsaritsyn, I can reach Moscow in three days!"  Didn't you arrive in Samara in the same day by taking the train from Moscow this morning? Don't think that I am so willing to tie myself to the right bank of the Volga River and accompany you to make you cough.

    To be honest, my people and I are just like Mr. Kolchak. We all want to fight back to Moscow and Petersburg to regain the lost territory and return to our hometown. You want peace, and we have given you peace, but you only have this in your hands.  If you dare to try to cheat on peace even though you have broken cards, don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t give you and Moscow a chance if the peace treaty fails!  "

    Pepelyayev, the Prime Minister of the Volga Federal Autonomous Government, was so proud and furious at this moment. If it weren't for Wang Geng's principle of allowing prisoners of war to voluntarily choose to stay or leave, if he had been replaced by Pepelyayev,  No one will be repatriated, and those who are willing to join the Volga Federation will directly supplement the Russian troops in the coalition.

    As for those who don¡¯t want to, those are the best materials used for building bridges, building roads, digging coal, and farming in the Volga Federation for hard labor. Who would be so generous as to give them back to you for free?  Put it back, take the gun, join the Soviet Red Army, and fight us to the end?  Everyone knows that the peace at the moment is just a temporary compromise between the two sides. The idea that peace can be maintained once and for all by signing a peace treaty is an insult to the intelligence of everyone on this land.

    Facing the Prime Minister of the Volga Federal Autonomous Government who bared his fangs, Chicherin was unable to resist, and finally had to hold his nose and continue.In addition to the four principles for the repatriation of prisoners of war, they also agreed against their will to the overlord clause that Soviet Russian representatives should not be present when prisoners of war voluntarily choose to stay or go.

    As for those prisoners of war who voluntarily returned to Soviet Russia, Pepelyayev first insisted that an equal number of people must be replaced, and secondly, he did not accept the half-dead tortured bourgeoisie, nobles, landlords and rich peasants in the concentration camps.  Including their children in exchange.

    For Pepelyaev, it is more appropriate to bring back a strong man to work than to replace these old men who have been deprived of their property and have no power to restrain themselves. Moreover, these are the years of great waves, and for those who  People with real talents and backgrounds who could be helpful to the Volga federal government had already been listed on the list of pages he submitted to Chicherin.

    The release of these people became a favor from Chicherin to Pepelyaev, rather than a negotiated exchange. Of course, everyone knew that this was considered a bribe to the Volga Federal Autonomous Government or something.  No need to pester.

    In the end, it was Chicherin¡¯s brain work. The guy suddenly thought of a way and asked tentatively,

    "Vasily Nikolayevich, I have an idea. Before I returned to Moscow this time, I had just returned from the Germans. They promised to repatriate some of the prisoners of the Tsarist Russian army back to Russia. I used these to get back to Russia.  How about exchanging the repatriated Russian prisoners of war with you for the Bolshevik prisoners of war who voluntarily returned to the left bank of the Volga River?¡±

    Chicherin's idea is not a bad idea. In the Battle of Ufa, the main forces of the two fronts of the Soviet Red Army were wiped out. Most of them were Bolsheviks with firm beliefs, and after returning from the prisoner of war camp, they said  Compared with the time-tested proletarian fighters, these people are much more reliable than the Tsarist Russian prisoners of war who have stayed in German prisoner-of-war camps for so long, and their combat effectiveness and morale are also much stronger.

    Although this deal was a bit of a loss for Soviet Russia, it was still better than having to retrain and organize the Tsarist Russian prisoners of war who had returned from Germany empty-handed.

    Upon hearing this, Pepelyaev became more energetic and asked hurriedly, "Georgi Vasilyevich, you are really capable. How many Tsarist Russian prisoners of war have come back from Germany so soon?"  People? I don¡¯t want those with yellow faces and skinny faces! The people in our prisoner-of-war camp are all prisoners of war from the main force of the Soviet Red Army. The ones you brought back from Germany are useless trash, right?  "

    "Absolutely nothing. There are hundreds of thousands of powerful prisoners of war. I mean Vasily Nikolayevich, do you think that these prisoners of war can survive in the German prisoner of war camps with such difficult conditions? Their physical fitness  It¡¯s hard to say that they are definitely great, and they also work as coolies among the Germans. When they come back to you, whether they are pulling carts, tying shafts, or digging coal, they are all good laborers!¡± Mr. Chicherin!  Selling melons and boasting oneself kept boasting.

    "Is it really as good as you say?" Pepelyaev was a little tempted by his doubts. For the Volga Federal Autonomous Government, it is theoretically easier to transform Tsarist Russian prisoners of war into their own new army than to transform prisoners of war from the Soviet Red Army.  There are so many, but I am afraid that these prisoners of war will pick up the leftover crooked melons, cracked dates, missing arms and legs. After two years of eating chaffy vegetables and working as coolies in the German prisoner-of-war camp, I don¡¯t know if they will be able to wear military uniforms again.  Have the courage to take to the battlefield!

    "All of them are good Russian young men. They are just a little hungry, and their faces are unavoidable. But if they come back and eat well for three days and take good care of themselves, they will definitely become qualified men. To tell you the truth,  I personally went to the prisoner-of-war camp and saw that all of them are great Russian boys!" Chichelin's brilliant tongue blew the sky with the quality of these Russian prisoners of war.

    "Okay, Georgi Vasilyevich, who told us to become neighbors? It's not easy for you to come all the way. So, two for one, each one voluntarily returns to the left bank of the Volga River  For the Soviet Red Army prisoners of war who have left, you can exchange them for two healthy Tsarist Russian prisoners of war who have returned from Germany. I will give priority to those whose hometowns are on the right bank of the Volga River or east of the Ural Mountains. There are no restrictions on nationality. If you are willing, this matter will be settled.  Okay, if you don¡¯t want to, then let¡¯s break up and never mention the issue of prisoners of war again!¡±

    Pepelyayev felt that the negotiation was almost done at this point, so he settled the issue of repatriation of prisoners of war at one price without any counter-offer. Chicherin had no choice but to think about it, and finally agreed after thinking about it.

    Then there is the issue of the handover of the area south of Saratov-Voronezh-Kursk, including Tsaritsyn. Pepelyaev requested the handover within three days. Once the handover is completed, the repatriation of prisoners of war will begin, but Chicherin here  I jumped on my feet and said it was absolutely too late. How many troops, workers, and factory facilities had to be evacuated to the north. How could three days be enough?
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