COLD WAR INTERNATIONAL HISTORY PROJECT BULLETIN, ISSUE 12/13 309

New Evidence on the Iran Crisis 1945-46

From the Baku Archives

[The following documents were provided to CWIHP by Dr. Jamil Hasanli (Baku State University). Hasanli,who has conducted extensive research on Soviet policies with regard to Iranian Azerbaijan in the early Cold War, obtained these documents from the State Archive of Political Parties and Social Movements of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Baku. Only a sample of a much larger collection to be published in future issues of the CWIHP Bulletin and CWIHP Working Papers, these documents allow unprecedented insight into Stalin’s systematic efforts to sponsor a separatist movement in Northern Iran. Some of the documents have also been consulted by Dr. Fernande Scheid (Yale University), who presented her findings for the first time at the September 1999 CWIHP Conference on “Stalin and the Cold War” at Yale University and who is the author of a forthcoming CWIHP Working Paper. Previous CWIHP publications on the subject, based on Russian archival materials, include Natalia Egorova, The ‘Iran Crisis’ of 1945-1946: A View from the Russian Archives (CWIHP Working Paper No. 15, Washington D.C.: Woodrow Wilson Center, 1997).

Hasanli contributed the documents in the framework of a new initiative on “The Caucasus in the Cold War,” co-sponsored by the National Security Archive and CWIHP. The initiative aims at unearthing new evidence from archives in the Southern Caucasus on important Cold War issues, such as Stalin’s plans for territorial expansion in 1945-46 with regard to Turkey and Iran; …

DOCUMENT No. 1

Decree of the [USSR] State Defense Committee No. 9168 SS, Regarding Geological Prospecting Work for Oil in Northern Iran, 21 June 1945

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The State Defense Committee Decree of the GOKO [State Defense Committee] No. 9168SS of 21 June  1945

Moscow, the Kremlin

Geological Prospecting Work for Oil in Northern Iran With the objective of geological prospecting and drilling work for oil in northern Iran, the State Defense Committee DECREES:

1. Organize within the “Azneft’” [Azerbaijani Oil] Association of the Narkomneft’ [the People’s commissariat for Oil] a Hydrogeological Directorate and entrust to this organization the supervision of geological prospecting for oil deposits in northern Iran.

2. To conduct this prospecting work in northern Iran hold Narkomneft’ (Cde. Baybakov) and Azneft’ (Cde.

Vezirov) responsible for supplying the necessary quantity of workers from the oil industry for drilling and prospecting teams and sending them to the place of work in the form of a hydrogeological detachment  created in the staff of the Soviet troops in Iran (Qazvin).

3. Establish a mission for the hydrogeological detachment to conduct the following work in northern Iran:

a) Drilling

10 pumps in 7 areas, including 3 stationary pumps (deep rotary drilling) in the areas of Shakhi, Bandar-hah,

and Mianeh; 4 stationary pumps (deep structural search drilling) in the areas of Shah, Bolgar-Chay, and Khoy; 3 mobile drilling units for structural search drilling in the areas of Bandar-Shah, Shaha-Babol’ser, and Pahlavi;

b) Geological Survey – one expedition comprising 10 teams in the areas of: the Gorgan Steppe, Ashraf-Shaha- Amol’, Khorramabad, Bolgar-Chai, Jul’fa-Zanjan, Tabriz- Ardebil’, and Ku-I-Gitcha-Siyakh-Ku;

c) Geological Prospecting – one expedition of 3 teams (gravimetric “Issing”, variometric and resistivity prospecting) in the areas: Gorgan Steppe, Mazanderan and Rasht lowlands, and along entire southern shore of the Caspian Sea from the border with the Turkmen SSR to the border with the Azerbaijan SSR.

Hold the Narkomneft’ (Cde. Baybakov) and Azneft’ (Cde. Vezirov) responsible for transferring the equired

drilling and prospecting equipment by 1 September 1945 to conduct the work to the required degree and [for] beginning drilling and prospecting work in September of 1945.

4. Hold the Narkomneft’ (Cde. Baybakov) responsible for organizing and dispatching by 1 August 1945: a geological survey expedition of 10 teams; a well-logging and electrometer team; a geophysical expedition of 3 teams (gravimetric “Issing”, variometric ((2 instruments)) and resistivity prospecting) by removing  these teams from the following regions: the gravimetric “Issing” [team] from Baku; the variometric [team] (2 instruments) from the Middle Volga Branch of the Narkomneft’ Geophysical Trust; the resistivity [team] from the area of Krasnodar.

5. With the objective of equipping the hydrogeological detachment with the necessary equipment,  instruments, and material hold [the following] responsible:

a) the Narkomneft’ (Cde. Baybakov) is to allocate and ship to the Hydrogeological Directorate in August 1945: 5 sets of pumps, drilling equipment, and a rotary drilling instrument; 4 sets of ZV-750 frames, rilling equipment, and the instrument for them; 3 sets of rods (1200 meters) and an instrument for KA-300 pumps, and other necessary equipment and materials for the work of the hydrogeological detachment;

b) the Narkomvneshtorg [People’s Commissariat for Foreign Trade] (Cde. Mikoyan) is to allocate to the

hydrogeological detachment in June-July 1945 15 trucktractors and 120 trucks from imports from the unassembled ones in Iran;

c) the Commanding General of the Transcaucasus Front, Cde. Tyulenev, is to allocate to the ydrogeological detachment the necessary office space and living quarters in Qazvin and at work locations, and also render aid with personnel from military units in assembling the 120 vehicles allocated to the hydrogeological detachment;

d) the USSR NKO [People’s Commissariat of Defense] (Cde. Vorob’yev [Marshal of Engineer Troops, M.P., Chief of Engineer Troops of the Soviet Army]) is, by 1 August 1945, to transfer to the disposition of the hydrogeological detachment in Iran two complete AVB-2-100 mobile drilling units in working order: a drilling machine AVB-2-100, a ZIS- 5 water tanker, a 1.5 ton vehicle with an instrument and one UA-125 frame with three drilling teams;

e) the USSR NKO ( [General of the Army, Chief of the Rear of the Soviet Army] Cde. Khrulev) is to send to the hydrogeological detachment in working order 5 MAK 12- ton vehicles, 7 logging truck trailers, and 15 Willys vehicles, and also provide for the repair of drilling equipment and automotive transport in repair shops of the Soviet transport directorate in Iran.

6. Hold the Commanding General of the Transcaucasus Front, Cde. Tyulenev, responsible for rendering aid to the hydrogeological detachment in drilling and geological prospecting work [by] providing a guard orce, and escort for the expeditions, providing cartographic materials, and also providing personnel of the Hydrogeological detachment with clothing and appropriate documents.

7. Hold the Narkomfin [People’s Commissariat of Finance] (Cde. Zverev) responsible in the 3rd and 4th  quarters of 1945 with allocating to the Narkomneft’ 8 million rubles, including 2,400,000 in rials for the Hydrogeological Directorate of the Azneft’ Association to obtain transport equipment and materials and for the maintenance of personnel.

8. Permit the NKVD of the Azerbaijan SSR to issue permission for entry into Iran of personnel sent by the

Narkomneft’ and the Azneft’ Association for the business of the Hydrogeological Directorate.

9. Confirm as Chief of the Hydrogeological Directorate Cde. Melik-Pashayev, V. S.; Chief of the Hydrogeological Directorate in the staff of the Soviet troops in Iran; Cde. Geydarov, N. G.; and as Deputy Chief of the Hydrogeological Directorate Cde. Kornev, A. N.

10. Hold Narkomneft’ (Cde. Baybakov) and the Azneft Association (Cde. Vezirov) responsible for personally exercising control over the supply of the hydrogeological detachment with personnel, engineering and technical workers, and provisioning with equipment and materials to carry out drilling and geological prospecting work in northern Iran.

11. Hold the Secretary of the CP(b) CC of Azerbaijan, Cde. Bagirov, responsible for rendering the

Hydrogeological Directorate of the Azneft’ Association all possible aid and observing the geological prospecting work for oil in northern Iran.

Chairman of the State Defense Committee

I. Stalin

Attested: [not signed]

[Source: State Archive of Political Parties and Social Movements of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Baku (GAPPOD AzR), f.1, op. 89. d.104. Obtained by Jamil Hasanli. Translated for CWIHP by Gary Goldberg.]