Comrade Mantsev!

Outrages are occurring in the Ukraine.

The Politburo directive (to remove Peshekhonov and the Peshekhonov people from Kharkov) is being sabotaged.

A section of the Ukrainian Central Committee people are allowing themselves to be deceived by Peshekhonov and the Peshekhonov group.

This is clear. And we will not allow ourselves to be deceived any longer.

I place upon your personal responsibility (on condition of secret and direct and careful communications with the Politburo in Moscow):

(1) to establish complete surveillance over Peshekhonov; (2) to send the results here; (3) the same for all the Peshekhonov people, with a list of them; (4) to achieve the immediate resignation of Peshekhonov and his dispatch to Moscow.

The Ukrainian Central Committee is completely slack and undisciplined. We shall see whether you are capable of carrying this out properly.

With comradely greetings, Lenin
3/II. 1921.

Published for the first time from the manuscript