November 14, 1945
TASS Report Distributed to Cdes. I.V. Stalin, V.M. Molotov, A.I. Mikoyan, L.P. Beria, G.M. Malenkov, and A. Ya. Vyshinsky, 'Expressen Comments on Rumors of an Illness of Comrade Stalin'
This document was made possible with support from Blavatnik Family Foundation
[stamp: Secret
Department of TASS]
Top Secret
EXPRESSEN COMMENTS ON RUMORS OF AN ILLNESS OF COMRADE STALIN
STOCKHOLM, 12 November, (TASS). The newspaper Expressen, commenting on rumors of the state of health of Cde. Stalin, is surprised “why the Soviet authorities do not put an end to these rumors”. In the newspaper’s opinion, it was necessary to give TASS a refutation about this. The newspaper continues, “The lack of an authoritative Russian refutation about all the rumors of the state of health of Stalin stimulates the fantasizing even more. As long as they behave secretively in Moscow, the Russians will have to reckon with a continuation of the campaign of rumors in America and Western Europe. These rumors will take on the form of political speculation, which is not always to Russia’s advantage. Possibly the Russians think that this is a lesser evil compared to preparing the Russian people for a tragic event”.
Seven copies printed
1 – to Cde. I. V. Stalin
2 – to Cde. V. M. Molotov
3 – to Cde. A. I. Mikoyan
4 – to Cde. L. P. Beria
5 – to Cde. G. M. Malenkov
6 – to Cde. A. Ya. Vyshinsky
7 – to file
Nº 535ss
14 November 1945
M. Nº 435
zp [handwritten: PR]
Swedish newspaper Expressen suggests that Western rumors surrounding Stalin's diminishing health will only get worse unless TASS, or some other authoritative Russian source, clearly refutes them.
Author(s):
Associated People & Organizations
Associated Places
Associated Topics
Document Information
Source
Original Archive
Rights
The History and Public Policy Program welcomes reuse of Digital Archive materials for research and educational purposes. Some documents may be subject to copyright, which is retained by the rights holders in accordance with US and international copyright laws. When possible, rights holders have been contacted for permission to reproduce their materials.
To enquire about this document's rights status or request permission for commercial use, please contact the History and Public Policy Program at [email protected].