Diplomatic activity in the territory of Kazakhstan during the war years (1941-1943): to the question of the powers of the Polish mission

Abstract

This article examines the international and military-political aspects of Polish diplomacy on the ter- ritory of Kazakhstan during the Second World War. More than seventy years ago, Kazakhstan, being on the periphery of a great war, became the main place in Middle Asia, where hundreds of thousands of Poles were collected for subsequent participation in hostilities. Here was formed the Polish army under the leadership of General Anders, who in future could play a role of liberator of Poland. This was the first step in deciding the fate of Poland. The “Polish question” was one of the important issues on the agenda of the Allied talks on the anti-Hitler coalition. The historical events of the world war include the creation on the territory of the Kazakh SSR of nine delegations (delegacje) - territorial embassy missions of the Polish Embassy and the Polish Army (1941-1943). Kazakhstan acquired an international experience of communicating with international organizations, with the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Polish delegations and other institutions for the organizational support of the “Polish question”. The purpose of the Polish missions is to gather officers and soldiers as soon as possible and form a Polish army. The article is based on archival documents that testify to the numerical and qualitative composition of the delegates, the scope of activity of Polish diplomats and their complex work with civilians and military persons, and the relationship with Soviet and party bodies. Polish diplomats had broad powers to provide all-round support to all Poles that lived in Kazakhstan. Currently, the Polish diaspora in Kazakhstan (“Kazakh Poles”) is a kind of bridge in the relations between Kazakhstan and Poland.

Key words: Maysky-Sikorsky agreement, embassy (ambasada), delegacja (embassy mission), Kazakh- stan, Anders Army, Polish diaspora