V. I.

Lenin

677

To:   L. B. KRASIN [1]

20/III.

Comrade Krasin:

I do not agree with you. Lezhava is a very nice comrade,
but he has fully demonstrated his weakness.

There is need for a different collegium (Politbureau), and a trio inside it: you + Frumkin + Radchenko, because
you are away very often, and authority should reside in
Russia. What is more, you are also a diplomat. And you are not doing any of the spade-work, purging the
swindlers, seeing to the order, flogging and thrashing for
non-fulfilment. You are responsible for the direction, but the spade-work needs strong-minded men, and not Lezhava.
They will learn how to work.

Yours,

Lenin

---
Notes:
[1]

R.C.P.(B.) C.C., Krasin insisted that Lezhava should remain in the
post of Deputy People’s Commissar.

On March 20, 1922, the Politbureau, having discussed the
matter, recognised that “it is absolutely necessary both in the interests
of foreign trade itself and for considerations of foreign policy to
keep Comrade Krasin in the post of People’s Commissar for
Foreign Trade”, and appointed M. I. Frumkin to the post of Deputy
People’s Commissar. On March 27, the C.P.C. approved the
following Collegium: People’s Commissar—L. B. Krasin; Deputy
People’s Commissars—A. M. Lezhava and M. I. Frumkin; members
of the Collegium—I. I. Radchenko, P. S. Sorokin, A. V. Barsky
and K. M. Begge (Central Party Archives of the Institute of
Marxism-Leninism of the C.P.S.U. Central Committee).