740.0011 European War 1939/33304: Telegram
The Ambassador in Turkey (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State
[Received 9:30 p.m.]
301. The Russian Ambassador8 informed me last night that the Bulgarian Minister had called on the Minister for Foreign Affairs9 to request that the Turkish Government intervene with the American and British Governments to bring about the discontinuance of the bombing of Sofia and other Bulgarian cities and that Numan had declined to accede to his request but instead had instructed the Turkish Minister in Sofia10 to ascertain authoritatively what steps the Bulgarian Government was prepared to take to dissociate itself from the Axis, whether it was considering going over to the Allied side. Vinogradov expressed the opinion that Numan was making a serious effort to persuade the Bulgarian Government to follow this course as it would not only result in the collapse of the Axis Balkan front but would at the same time permit Turkey’s immediate entry into the war without serious risk.
Repeated to Moscow.