V. I. Lenin

Speech At the Joint Meeting of the
Bolshevik and “Left” Socialist-Revolutionary Groups of the All-Russia C.E.C.
[1]

February 23, 1918 Newspaper Report

Lenin spoke in defence of signing the German proposals. He began by saying that Soviet
power must face up to the truth, that it must acknowledge the total impossibility of
resistance to the Germans. He referred to the previous speakers who rejected signature to the
treaty, but the view that we could organise an army in the near future was wholly without
grounds; the army did not want to fight and no one could compel it to do so; if, however, we
were to start A joint meeting of the Bolshevik and Left Socialist-Revolutionary groups in the
All-Russia Central Executive Committee was held in the evening of February 23, 1918 to
discuss the question of accepting the new German peace terms. The atmosphere at the meeting
was extremely tense. After a report on the situation at the front by the Supreme Commander N.
V. Krylenko, who announced that the army was demobilising spontaneously, K. B. Radek, D. B.
Ryazanov and the Left Socialist-Revolutionary I. Z. Steinberg spoke against concluding peace.
Lenin spoke in favour of concluding peace. No decisions were taken at the meeting. The joint
meeting of the two groups was followed by a meeting of the Bolshevik group of the All-Russia
C.E.C. The “Left Communists” demanded freedom to vote as they pleased at the
forthcoming meeting of the All-Russia C.E.C., but this demand was rejected by the group and a
majority decision was taken to vote at the All-Russia C.E.C. meeting in favour of concluding
peace. p. 42 organising an army, if we were to collect a small handful of valiant fighters
whom we would throw into the jaws of imperialism, we would thereby lose energetic and
ideologically equipped fighters who had won us victory.

Further, Lenin said that our Russian proletariat was not at all to blame if the German
revolution was delayed. It would come but it was not there yet, and for us the best way out
was to gain time; if we were to sign a peace treaty at the present moment, we could
subsequently, by energetic, organised work, by railway construction and by putting food
matters in order, create a strong and stable army for the defence of our revolution, and
before that time the socialist revolution in Germany would certainly arrive.

Endnotes

1. A joint meeting of the Bolshevik and
Left Socialist-Revolutionary groups in the All-Russia Central Executive Committee was held in
the evening of February 23, 1918 to discuss the question of accepting the new German peace
terms. The atmosphere at the meeting was extremely tense. After a report on the situation at
the front by the Supreme Commander N. V. Krylenko, who announced that the army was
demobilising spontaneously, K. B. Radek, D. B. Ryazanov and the Left Socialist-Revolutionary
I. Z. Steinberg spoke against concluding peace. Lenin spoke in favour of concluding
peace.

No decisions were taken at the meeting.

The joint meeting of the two groups was followed by a meeting of the Bolshevik
group of the All-Russia C.E.C. The “Left Communists” demanded freedom to vote as
they pleased at the forthcoming meeting of the All-Russia C.E.C., but this demand was
rejected by the group and a majority decision was taken to vote at the All-Russia C.E.C.
meeting in favour of concluding peace.