V. I. Lenin

Telegram to Commander-In-Chief (In Serpukhov)

29/11

As our troops push on westward and into the Ukraine, provisional
regional Soviet governments are being formed to back up the
Soviets in the localities. This has the advantage of depriving
the Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian chauvinists of a
chance to regard our troop movements as occupation and of
creating a favourable situation for further advance. Otherwise
our troops would have been in an impossible situation on
occupied territory and the local population would not have met
them as liberators. In view of the situation, please issue an
order to the commanders of the corresponding units so that they
render all possible support to the provisional Soviet governments in Latvia, Estonia, the Ukraine and Lithuania, but,
of course, only to the Soviet governments.

Lenin

Endnotes