I beg leave to draw your attention to General Dupont's suggestion for the despatch of Allied stationnaires to Königsberg and Memel, and I request you to be so good as to submit it to the Peace Conference for decision.

Enclosure

SPA, May 16th, 1919.

General Nudant, Interallied Armistice Commission.
To Marshal Foch, Paris.

General Dupont has communicated to me a telegram addressed on May 15th by General Spire* to Colonel Reboul.

In a secret document of April 22nd the German Government says that it will not sign a Peace of violence and that it is preparing a new war especially against the Poles.

It adds that negotiations have been carried on with the Soviet and that their result is satisfactory.

Many German Non-Commissioned Officers who have volunteered to serve in Russia will be collected at Königsberg whence they will start in service dress without arms. General Henrys asks Colonel Rebour to watch the movements of German military cadres towards the Bolshevik army and to report to him.

General Dupont suggests the despatch of Allied stationnaires to watch these movements, especially at Königsberg and Memel. He asks that Spire's information may be forwarded to the British stationnaires at Libau.

*of General Henrys' Mission at Warsaw. [Footnote in the original.]

Paris Peace Conf. 180.03201/20

FM-20

Notes of a Meeting of Foreign Ministers Held in M. Pichon's Room at the Quai d'Orsay, Paris, on Saturday, 24th May, 1919, at 3 p. m.

1. M. PICHON said that the first question on the Agenda Paper related to the withdrawal of the German troops from the Baltic Provinces and Russian Polish Front. The question had been raised by Marshal Foch in a letter dated 13th May 1919 which had been circulated on the 17th May 1919 (See W. C. P. 805). He would call on

Withdrawal of
German Troops
From Baltic
Provinces and
Russian Polish
Front

Colonel Georges to state the facts of the case.

COLONEL GEORGES said that in a letter dated the 9th May 1919, General von Hammerstein, the President of the German Armistice Commission, had informed the President of the Interallied Armistice Commission that the German Government would, within a short time, withdraw all the fighting forces from Lettland and Lithuania. General von Hammerstein's letter went on to state that the German Government had already taken preparatory measures with a view to bringing about a suspension of arms with a consequential Armistice with the troops opposed to them: that the withdrawal of the troops would take place within a period sufficient to assure the security of the property of the German Empire in Lettland and Lithuania; and that the responsibility for the consequences following upon the evacuation of Lettland and Lithuania would fall upon the Allied and Associated Powers.

At the same time, the Polish National Committee had requested the Allied and Associated Governments to intervene with Marshal Foch in order that he might summon the German troops to evacuate the territories of Grodno and Suvalki and to retire within the territories of Germany.

Both these demands had reference to the interpretation to be given to Clause 12 of the Armistice of the 11th November, 1918, namely:

"All German troops at present in any territory which before the war belonged to Russia, Roumania, or Turkey, shall withdraw within the frontiers of Germany as they existed on August 1st, 1914, and all German troops at present in the territories which before the war formed part of Russia must likewise return to within the frontiers of Germany as above defined as soon as the Allies shall think the moment suitable having regard to the internal situation of those territories."

It appeared, therefore, that on the one hand the Germans threatened to withdraw their troops from the territories in question; whilst on the other hand, the Polish Government on the strength of Article 12 of the Armistice, called for the evacuation of the zone at the back of the Polish forces.

MR. LANSING enquired whether the zone of Vilna was at present occupied by the Poles.

COLONEL GEORGES replied that Vilna itself was at present occupied by the Poles; at the back of Vilna existed a zone which was traversed by railway lines, which were necessary for the despatch of supplies from Poland to the Polish forces on the Vilna front. It was an interesting fact, calling for serious consideration, that the Germans had remained in occupation of those railway lines, and that they had lately concentrated considerable forces in that quarter.

MR. LANSING enquired whether Colonel Georges referred to the railway line between Vilna and Grodno?

COLONEL GEORGES replied that he would enter into that question in greater detail when dealing with the suggestion for fixing a line of demarcation between the Polish and German zones of occupation.

Colonel Georges, continuing, said that the object Marshal Foch had kept in mind in referring General von Hammerstein's Note of the 9th May to the Council, had been to obtain a ruling in regard to the conditions which should govern the application of Clause 12 of the Armistice of the 11th November in regard to the Polish-GermanLithuanian front. These conditions were three in number, namely:— Firstly-the immediate evacuation by the German troops of the zone at the back of the Polish Army operating in the Vilna region; Secondly to draw the attention of the Germans that it is their duty to maintain their forces on Lithuania and Lettish fronts until the Entente should authorise them to withdraw the same;

Thirdly-to organise with as little delay as possible under an interallied control, the local forces in Lithuania and Latvia in order to enable these to take the place of the Germans on their respective fronts.

On the 23rd May, an agreement had been reached in regard to questions 2 and 3 above.

MR. LANSING enquired by whom this agreement had been reached. COLONEL GEORGES replied that the decision had been reached by the Foreign Ministers themselves at the meeting held yesterday.

MR. LANSING maintained that at yesterday's meeting no mention had been made of Poland. The Ministers had only dealt with Latvia, Lithuania and Esthonia.

COLONEL GEORGES agreed. He explained, however, that Poland was in no way involved. He had considered the question as a whole and had divided the same into two parts: the one, dealing with Latvia and Lithuania, which had been discussed and disposed of at Yesterday's meeting; the other, relating to the Polish zone of occupation in the region of Vilna, which it was proposed should be settled at that meeting.

MR. LANSING enquired whether the question which Colonel Georges raised had anything to do with the dispute between the Letts and the Poles, who were at the present moment furiously fighting with one another.

COLONEL GEORGES replied that the question under consideration was merely a Germano-Polish one.

MR. BALFOUR enquired whether the only problem to be brought before the Council on that date related to the withdrawal of the Germans from the territory now occupied by them at the back of the Polish lines.

COLONEL GEORGES replied in the affirmative, since the rest of the problem had been settled on the previous day.

Colonel Georges, resuming, said that the Polish front under con

sideration began south of the Lettish town of Vilkomir, then ran in a south-easterly direction, passing 40 miles to the East of the town of Vilna, whence it passed through Soli and proceeded in the direction of Baranovichi. The northern portion of this zone, the region of Vilna, was crossed by two railway lines-the Byelostok-Grodno-Vilna line, and the Suvalki-Olita line, which joined the previous one at Roani [Orany]. These railway lines constituted the only means of communication between Poland proper and the Polish front in the region of Vilna. It was therefore, absolutely necessary that the Poles should have the full control and the free use of these railway lines. With that object in view, General Henrys had proposed that the Germans should be compelled to withdraw their troops from the territory in question, a line of demarcation, separating the Polish zone of occupation from the German zone of occupation, being laid down to the north, to pass through Lyudvinof, Balverjishki, Dersunishki, Jigmori, Chakiski, and south of Vilkomir. It was hoped that this would definitely put a stop to the concentration of German troops which continued to take place at Suvalki, and at Augustovo in the railway zone.

MR. LANSING said that he had been supplied with a map giving the line of demarcation proposed by General Henrys. That line had been referred to the Commission on Polish Affairs by whom it had been rejected. Consequently, he thought, much time would be saved if the proposed line of demarcation between Lithuania and Poland were not discussed further.

MR. BALFOUR enquired whether the line of demarcation now under discussion constituted a military or a political line. In other words, was it a line which was to form the actual future political boundary between the States of Lithuania and Poland? Or, was it merely a temporary line which was to be laid down in order to ease the existing military situation? If the line was intended to represent the future political boundary line, he agreed with Mr. Lansing that the Council was not competent at present to discuss the question. But, if the line were a purely military one, then, he thought, Mr. Lansing need feel no anxiety in arriving at a decision.

MR. LANSING held that if the proposal were to lay down a temporary military line, the question should be referred for decision to the Military Representatives of the Allied and Associated Governments. His information went to show that the Lithuanians were actually in arms, ready to resist further Polish advances. Consequently, the Council should be very careful in dealing with this question.

COLONEL GEORGES explained that the line of demarcation proposed by General Henrys was based solely on military considerations. The Polish front at present extended to the East of Vilna and it was impossible to leave all the lines of communication in possession of the