Coll 28/97 ‘Persia. Diaries. Tehran Intelligence Summaries’ [‎88r] (175/749)

• c
Russian Affairs.
Russian officer in Meshed stated to His Majesty’s Vice-Consul that
some.bpitnre aircraft had arrived in Meshed in February for the training of
Kussian pilots.
If ^. no ^ e 01 ? Soviet influence in Persia is attached to this summary.
.. ^*- ls Majesty’s Vice-Consul in Tabriz recently visited Western
Azerbaijan and gained the impression that the Russians were now regretting
-j^ie encouragement they had given to the Kurds in the early days of their
^cupation. 1 hey were now appreciating the necessity for settled conditions in
Western Azerbaijan and for the maximum production of food-stuffs. They were
not, however, willing to allow the Persian Government to maintain adequate
forces in that area for the maintenance of order and limited even the size of
posts^ But they were using their moral influence to assist the Persians to keep
the Kurds in order, and on more than one occasion they had demonstrated their
support of the Persian authorities by sending Russian officers to accompany
Persian officers to insist on the Kurds complying with Persian demands. They are
suspicious of any indication of British influence among the Kurds of Western
Azerbaijan, and the suggestion that a man is a British agent is enough to ensure
his arrest.
A merican Interests.
15. A.n Irano-American Society has been formed for the encouragement of
social relations. The president is Hassan Isfandiari, the President of the Majlis,
and the vice-president is the American Minister.
Polish Affairs.
16. The number of civilian Polish refugees still in Persia is :—
In Tehran : 10,971 men, women and children.
Isfahan : 1.911 men, women and children.
Ahwaz : 3,971 men, women and children.
Total : 16,853 men, women and children.
Soviet Influence in Persia.
1. There has been recently a very noticeable change in the sentiments of the
Persian people towards Russia. Closer contact with Russians and experience
in Russian methods have already done much to modify the conception, hitherto
popular among the masses, of Russia as a bogy and of Russians as brutal savages.
The generally admirable discipline of Russian troops in Persia, their good
behaviour towards the people, their professed sympathy with the lower classes,
their advertised contentment with their own system, the good relations
apparently existing between officers and men and the obviously magnificent
morale of the Russian people have greatly affected preconceived ideas of the
Soviet system. The Russians are at pains to bring to the notice of the Persian
people their cultural activities. There are in Tehran two well-stocked Russian
bookshops, where Russian classical and modern literature, technical hand
books, newspapers and pamphlets can be obtained, and a permanent exhibition
showing pictures of cultural interest, and having also a reading-room. Somewhat
similar centres exist in Tabriz and Meshed. Russian films are also much in
evidence in Tehran and provincial towns. An increasingly sympathetic interest
is being shown in the principles of the Soviet system, and a courageous few even
dare to advocate the adoption in Persia of some at least of its practice. This is
the more noticeable in that communism is generally repugnant to the Persian
people, both poor and rich.
2. The less frightful Russia is to the masses the more of a bogy does she
become to the propertied classes. A situation seems to be developing where the
masses may draw closer to Russia and the propertied classes come to be associated
more closely than they now are with Great Britain. Indeed, Russia is already
beginning to be regarded as the champion of the oppressed and is being looked to
bv & the leaders of the discontented as a possible supporter of a revolution against
the present ruling classes. The Russians, so the legend goes, have prevented the
British removing food-stuffs from the provinces occupied by Russian troops; there
the peasants have plenty; in those parts of Persia unfortunately deprived of
Russian influence the poor are starving, while the British put large sums into the
pockets of contractors, who exploit the worker and corner the people's food for
sale to the British for consumption or export. That the Russians also consume
and export considerable quantities of local produce has little effect on Persians