Turning the pages back... July 7, 1945 (07/06/03)

Turning the pages back...

July 7, 1945

On July 7, 1945, The Ukrainian Weekly reported that Carpatho-Ukraine had been annexed by the Soviet Union, giving the Soviet Union control over the entire territory of Ukraine, with the exception of the Lemkivschyna and Kholmschyna regions.

Carpatho-Ukraine had declared independence on March 15, 1939, but was re-taken by Hungary shortly thereafter, despite fierce opposition from Carpatho-Ukraine's Sitch Guard. The annexation by the Soviet Union occurred by means of an agreement signed in Moscow by the Soviet Foreign Commisar Vyacheslaff M. Molotov, with Joseph Stalin in attendance, and Czechoslovakia's Prime Minister Zdenek Fierlinger. Czechoslovakia had ruled Carpatho-Ukraine before its break-up in 1939.

The agreement provided for an exchange of populations between the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia, and the creation of commissions to set boundaries between the countries and to liquidate property in Carpatho-Ukraine.

According to The Weekly, the agreement stipulated that Carpatho-Ukraine would be "reunited with her ancient motherland." It was to become a part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

The pact also stated that the transferal of Carpatho-Ukraine was "in accordance with the desire shown by the population of Carpatho-Ukraine." However, as The Weekly noted, there was no vote to determine this so-called desire.

The Soviet Union's acquisition of Carpatho-Ukraine was thought to be aimed at ending any chance of a nationalist uprising. By bringing the area under Soviet control, Carpatho-Ukraine could not enjoy the freedom to foment rebellion in other Ukrainian territories already incorporated into the Soviet Union.

In the same issue, The Weekly re-published an article by The New York Times correspondent Anne O'Hare McCormick about the acquisition of Carpatho-Ukraine by the Soviet Union. In her conclusion, Ms. McCormick wrote, "The relationship of all these countries are changed. Before even the preliminary peace conference, the Versailles map of Eastern Europe is already altered beyond recognition, and already in a new way, for such transfers as that of the Carpatho-Ukraine mean incorporation not only into another country but another system of life. This is why they are significant, and why it is important to give people some voice in their destiny."

Source: "Soviet Annexation of Carpatho-Ukraine," The Ukrainian Weekly, July 7, 1945. "Now the Great Ukraine Is All in the Soviet Union," The Ukrainian Weekly, July 7, 1945.

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