Today in History – 22 December

The Frunze Report on Turkey

One of the leading names of Soviet history, General Mikhail Vasilyevich Frunze was assigned to Turkey as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary upon the orders of Lenin and arrived in Ankara on December 13, 1921. Establishing close ties with Mustafa Kemal Pasha, Frunze summarized his initial observations on the atmosphere in Ankara and the Turkish army as follows in the report he submitted to Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs Georgy Chicherin on December 22, 1921:

The people are devastated, tired, and want peace. However, as a result of a powerful and effective propaganda, they understand the need to fight. The army is in a poor state; soldiers have no uniforms, lack guns, and cannot undertake a winter operation. Yet, their spirits are still high. There is shortage of food in the country. Due to problems of transportation, the army is not being fed well…

Turkey’s own resources are not enough to resolve the military problems in a positive way. The army may resist, but without help from outside, it is impossible to attain absolute victory…

Mikhail Vasilyevich Frunze visited the Sakarya Front in the ensuing days and, following a dinner given in his honor on December 30th, returned to his country on January 5, 1922.