Türkçe TercümeAs the world was hurtling towards a new great war, everyone in Europe was anxious to be on the right side when it broke out. Poland, who had signed a non-aggression pact with the Soviets on July 25, 1932, anti-Soviet activities were closely monitored and financial aid was cut off, especially after the death of Marshal Jozef Pilsudski on May 12, 1935. This situation had an extremely negative impact on the Warsaw-based Prometheus movement and its Caucasus section, the Popular Party of the Caucasian Mountaineers. The Azerbaijani and Georgian groups in the Caucasus section of the Prometheus movement were elements of the Marxist-oriented Russian Social Democratic Labor Party during the Russian Revolution. As a result of the division of the party cadres into two factions, Bolsheviks and Mensheviks during the February and October Revolutions, this group, which was in the Menshevik wing, became political refugees when the Bolsheviks gained power. Therefore, they did not have any doctrine or project for the independence and statehood of the Caucasus. The North Caucasian political refugees in the Caucasian part of the Promethean movement were mostly military men who served in General Denikin's Volunteer Army, who fought against the Bolsheviks in the period 1917-1921 and aimed to restore the Russian monarchy. A few members of the Christian Ossetian and Abkhazian Menshevik groups were also part of this group. Therefore, they also did not have any doctrine or project for the independence and statehood of the Caucasus. For this reason, they adopted the ideas of Haydar Bammat and his group and presented them as their own ideology in the periodicals they published with the financial aid they obtained from the Polish secret service. In fact, they even tried to embrace the ideal of the Caucasian Confederation, which Bammat and his inner circle had been advocating since 1917, and made a great political show by signing a hollow Confederation Pact in Brussels in July 1934 with Georgian and Azerbaijani Menshevik members of the Caucasus section of the Prometheus movement. The reaction against this initiative was not limited to Bammat's group, “Kavkaz”, but outraged the entire Caucasian political emigration. Even Said Shamil, who at the time was expelled from the party on corruption charges, condemned the initiative. Having lost its comfortable working conditions in Poland, the Prometheus movement attempted to reorganize in Paris on January 8, 1939, in the form of a charity club but did not find the opportunity to carry out any significant activity in practice.
The “Kavkaz” Group, which was led in France by the former Foreign Minister of the North Caucasus Republic Heydar Bammat and included Azerbaijani and Georgian Nationalist-Democrats, was the only coherent anti-Soviet movement whose sole aim was the liberation of the Caucasus from the Soviet occupation, without being part of any international interest center. However, Kavkaz was no longer able to work comfortably in France due to the Franco-Soviet Treaty of Alliance, which was drafted on May 2, 1935, and entered into force on March 27, 1936. Watching the developments in France and seeing that the future of the Caucasian cause in France was not very reassuring, Haydar Bammat wrote a letter on November 1, 1935, to be sent to the Japanese Military Attaché Major Usui, who was serving at the Embassy in Berlin at that time, explaining the struggle for independence of the Caucasian peoples and requesting support from Japan for the will of the Caucasian peoples to establish a confederative state. This letter was the beginning of a great friendship and solidarity. As a matter of fact, after this correspondence, Bammat had the opportunity to publish a magazine in which he would publish his ideas with the financing he obtained from the Japanese Embassy in Paris, and the periodical “Kavkaz”, which also bore the name of the group, started to be published in early 1936.
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Noticing the rapprochement between the Kavkaz group and Japanese diplomats in Europe, Said Shamil contacted the Japanese and tried to divert the financial resources himself that were being directed to his political rivals. On November 1, 1937, Said Shamil wrote a long letter to the Japanese Imperial Government, sent it to the Japanese Military Attaché, Colonel Tanaka, on November 28, and asked him to deliver his letters to the authorities. In his letter, Said Shamil demanded that his group be chosen by Japan as a Caucasian ally in the imminent world war while trying to discredit his political rival, the Kavkaz group:
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Dear Colonel,
It is my duty to bring the real state of affairs before the notice of our Friends in the Far East, whose high sentiments and sincerity concerning our questions are not to be doubted.
As promised, I have exposed my convictions on this subject. Were it not for your present heavy occupations, I would have liked to transmit to you verbally, some explanations concerning the situation and the internal works of the Caucasus. However, I hope with all my heart, that the affairs dragging on in Paris do not arrive at their negative and eminently harmful ends to disturb the common interests which are of great importance.
By taking this opportunity to present to you my deepest feelings, I entrust to your good care to forward the attached letter to its destination while thanking you, my most Esteemed Colonel.
S. Shamil
THE CAUCASUS
Situated between two inland seas: the Caspian to the East, the Black Sea to the West, separated from Russia to the North by the Kuban and Kouma rivers, with Turkey and Persia as its southern border, the Caucasus, from which we claim independence, has an exceptional geographical and political situation.
The area is 350,000 km2, of which 168,000 km2 is the North Caucasus and 182,000 km2 is the South Caucasus.
Of the total population of 4,221,000 living in the North, 2,947,840 are Highlanders and Circassians, 892,360 are Russians, Cossacks, and Ukrainians, and 371,000 are other national or foreign elements.
Of the 6,889,000 inhabitants of the South Caucasus, 2,505,000 are Azeris [Azerbaijanis], 1,786,000 Armenians, 1,784,000 Georgians, 500,000 Slavs, 159,000 Kurds, and 155,000 of various other nationalities.
One of the major factors in this ethnic diversity is that this country has been, since the earliest times, one of the main passages of great migrations.
There is no doubt that, were it not for the orogenic constitution of the country, this diversity of race would have been even greater.
But today, which group of nations is dominant?
We will not take into account the 1,392,360 Slavs, and some 526,000 inhabitants formed by the various minorities, all foreign. We then note that there are 5,611,840 Circassian and Azeri [Azerbaijani] Muslims, against 3,570,000 Georgian and Armenian Christians, both of purely national origin.
A simple glance at a map of the Caucasus is enough to demonstrate the dominant position of the Muslim elements over the Armenians, who have been a national body for 26 centuries, and over the Georgians, whose national history dates back to 21 centuries before Christ.
The Caucasian Mountains, which extend from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea, and which are the impassable barriers, not only of the Caucasus but of the whole of the Near East, are inhabited exclusively by purely Muslim elements, Circassians and Daghestanis.
The parts that form the wealth of the Caucasus, the plains of Kuban and Terek in the North, and that of Azerbaijan in the South, are in the hands of the Muslims.
With a wealth of flora and fauna, unequaled elsewhere, the fertile plains of the Caucasus provide everything from simple millet to the most renowned tea. Cotton cultivation is most flourishing there.
As for minerals, the incalculable wealth of the subsoil, one of the first in the world, is located rather in the parts of the Caucasus inhabited by Muslims. Only the production of naphtha, which alone constitutes one of the greatest fortunes, with 47 million tons annually, obtained under today's conditions, is located also within the national limits of the North Caucasus and Azerbaijan, including in Baku, Grozny, and Maykop.
A glance at the history of the Russian invasion of the Caucasus tells us about the fighting and warlike capacities of the inhabitants of this country.
The wars of conquest of the Caucasus, which began under Ivan Grozny and continued under Peter I and Catherine II, bloody wars, that filled the 17th and 18th centuries from beginning to end, had only the Dagestanis and the Circassians as heroes defending the national heritage.
The wars of Imam Mansur, Imam Ghazi-Muhammad, and Imam Shamil are epics not only for the Caucasian countries but also and as much for the entire Muslim world.
Regrettably, the role of the Georgian and Armenian leaders during these glorious struggles was only indifference and a certain tendency to accept the yoke of Tsarism for the future.
The situation is the same, in its general outlines, today the only bastion of the defense of the Middle East remains the Caucasus and the Muslim elements. The sporadic revolts against the Bolshevik regime testify to this.
Any Caucasian Muslim, young or old, who can carry a weapon is a natural enemy to the Russian, who is different from him in race, culture, and religion.
Any circles interested in the Caucasus, economically, socially, or militarily, must necessarily and by force of circumstances come together and reach an agreement with the Caucasian Muslim elements to see their cause succeed.
Moreover, the situation of the Muslims of the Caucasus is advantageous for any enterprise against Russia, because they have two great free nations, friends and brothers, Turkey and Persia, as their supporters.
Today's Turkey and Persia, with their 36 million inhabitants, are no longer Turkey and Persia of the same number. Always progressing in all areas, these two countries closely linked by blood, culture, and religion to the Muslims of the Caucasus, will one day be ready to show aid and protection to the Caucasians, in their struggles for their freedom and their national cause.
How is the Caucasus, which has a very complex ethnic makeup, administered by the Russians?
In 1859, upon the capture of Imam Shamil, when the Caucasus fell entirely under Russian rule, it was administered by a Viceroy whose government was based on the traditions of the peoples of that country.
In 1917, following the revolution in Russia, the Caucasus was divided into independent republics: in the north, including the Caucasus Mountains, the North Caucasian Republic; in the southeast, with Persia, bordering the Republic of Azerbaijan; in the southwest, with Turkey, bordering the Georgian Republic; and in the south-central region, the Armenian Republic, bordering Persia and Turkey.
This situation lasted until the Bolsheviks re-invaded these countries.
In 1921 the Russians, once again dominating the Caucasus, divided it into two sides, the North and the South. This North, after having been divided into very small autonomous regions, was, due to its extreme strategic importance for the Russians, directly attached to the Rostov center. The South of the Caucasus had to constitute a federated republic allied to Russia and having Tiflis as its capital center.
The policy followed by Moscow in this regard is transparent:
1 - divide the Turkish Muslim element into a multitude of minorities,
2 - to prevent the Caucasus from forming a homogeneous whole from an administrative point of view.
According to the new Stalinist constitution, the South Caucasus Federation was divided into three republics: Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia. The North Caucasus was divided into four autonomous republics and two rayons: Dagestan, Chechen-Ingush, Ossetia, Kabarda-Balkar, and the Ordzhonikidze and Black Sea rayons.
The elite who protested against this division were considered betrayers of the regime, and having national ideas and goals were severely pursued, punished, or exiled, and have since been replaced by the Russians.
But despite everything, today the Caucasus, especially the North Caucasus, is the home of all those who revolt and fight against the Bolshevik regime.
Are there any political organizations that lead the national struggles in the Caucasus according to a given program?
For a long time, national movements have been led by political parties.
Except for the Bolshevik parties based on the domination of the Russians, there were only four strong organizations that managed to represent the national struggles: The Dashnaks Armenians, Georgian Mensheviks, Azerbaijani Musavats, and the North Caucasian People's Party.
Among these national parties, the Musavatists of Azerbaijan are national democrats, and the Caucasian People's Parties are national extremists; as for the Mensheviks and Dashnaks, they have organizations of a purely socialist program.
However, it would be a mistake to consider only the programs of these organizations. It would be necessary to take into account their technique in action their representation of national movements and, above all, the confidence that the people have in their national lieder, confidence that is the fruit of many years of work and sincerity.
It should be noted that any action aimed at the independence of the Caucasus, any national publications, both outside and within the country, except the Caucasus Review, rely only on the four aforementioned organizations or the personality of the Leaders of these groups.
However, it should be noted that there are parties such as the Armenian Hinchak , the Georgian National Democrats and Federalists, the Azerbaijani Ittihad and Socialist parties, and the North Caucasus Federalists.
These parties, of entirely secondary importance, are in no way able to play an active role in the national movements in the present difficult and dangerous conditions.
The Socialist and Ittihad parties of Azerbaijan practically do not exist today. As for the Georgian National Democratic Party, it is divided into different antagonistic tendencies and is without a leader.
Other elements presenting themselves as forces, seeking to channel the aid of the Imperial Japanese Government and the German and Italian Governments, on their individual, certain Georgian and Azeri personalities for the South, Haydar Bammat for the North are among them.
Taking advantage of the circumstances, they mislead these Governments about their possibilities, as for their action it is and can only be harmful.
Did these national organizations receive foreign aid in their struggle?
After the invasion of the Caucasus by the Bolsheviks, a consequence of Mr. Lloyd George's Eastern policy, the Caucasian organizations had at that time only France to help them.
The position then taken by Mr. Briand, against the Bolsheviks encouraged these movements. This is how everyone rushed to Paris. But all the combinations undertaken by the General Staff and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs were thwarted by the English. This ambiguous situation lasted until 1925.
The Poles, wary of the danger of the growing power of the International, following the Rapallo Pact, sought to create a national front against it and they reached out to the national organizations of the oppressed peoples of Russia. Thus Warsaw was the only point of support in Europe for these movements.
In 1933, with the rise to power of Mr. Hitler, the political situation in Europe changed radically. Although Berlin then became the center of the struggle against Bolshevism, it must be admitted that Warsaw retained its importance.
We believe there are three causes for this:
1- Warsaw could reach an agreement with the most experienced and serious organizations in the fight against Russia.
2- in the support and assistance provided, Warsaw by all means refrains from any action that could hurt the pride of these organizations.
3- the geographical situation of Poland is very important and serious, from the point of view of any action, which leads to the dismemberment of Russia.
Could the situation continue like this in the future?
Germany's adverse policy against the Bolsheviks, caught under the pressure of external and internal necessities entering the realm of reality as a result of the preparations, which are increasing day by day, and the agreements concluded with the Empire of Japan on the one hand and Italy on the other, is beginning to assume major importance. Faced with such an extensive front, it cannot be denied that Warsaw's policy can only remain very isolated.
However, it must be noted that the contacts undertaken by Germany with the representatives of the oppressed peoples who are fighting against Russia do not go beyond the scope of extensive information. This shows that either Germany has not yet made its final decision, or it cannot yet trust the existing organizations.
But this situation is unlikely to put the national organizations, which are working for the purpose of separation from Russia, in a difficult position when tomorrow Germany, having completed its preparations, decides to take up the question of Russia, on its own, with a specific program and all in its strict interest.
It must always be taken into account that Germany alone constitutes a colossal force. This force considers its own interests above all else.
We then ask ourselves, if this force tomorrow having secured the means to act freely against Russia and overthrow the Bolshevik regime considered as being the enemy, will it institute a strong government that will be for it an ally? Or on the other hand, as it has already finally foreshadowed, at the London conference during a request prepared long in advance, to have colonies will it try to profit from it at our expense?
Despite the expressed wishes for the independence of the Caucasus and Ukraine, in Mr. Hitler's book "Mein Kampf" we recall how, following the anarchy that had set in in Russia, towards the end of the Great War, the German General Staff worked to penetrate into Ukraine and Kuban, considering only Germany's own interests, not even taking into account its ally Turkey, took a position in favor of Georgia and Armenia, to the detriment of the North Caucasus and Azerbaijan.
Did our powerful friends in the Far East, who concluded agreements with Germany for the fight against communism, clearly determine the situation that Russia would take in the future?
Unfortunately, we know nothing about it, and if one is to conclude from the impressions received in Berlin and the news received from Rome, the results are less than satisfactory. Therefore, we consider it a duty to express our ideas clearly on these questions to our Japanese friends.
In our opinion, the most practical and positive path to follow in our best interests, under today's conditions, among European governments that can act against Russia is:
1- for the Imperial Japanese Government to determine separately from Poland, which is the necessity of acting in our best interests, the bases must ensure the independence of the Oriental peoples, oppressed by Russia.
2- to strengthen the above-mentioned understanding and on condition of not allowing the solution given to the movements of the Cossacks and the Ukrainians, which interest Germany and Italy, to develop to the detriment of the Crimea and the Caucasus, to intercede in the negotiations between Germany and Poland.
3- while the defense of the cause of the Oriental peoples, oppressed by the Russians, is thus assured near the great Nations of Europe, grant to the Japanese attaché in Turkey, extensive powers, to prepare separately for these purposes the ground near the government of the Near East.
What is the field in which one can work in the East?
It should be made clear that, first of all, the liberation and development of the East requires not only the fall of the Bolshevik regime but also the dismemberment of Russia.
The Imperial Japanese Government proclaims its enmity, the Poles subsidize national organizations working against the Russians, and although Turkey, Persia, and Afghanistan face the Russian peril, they refrain from proclaiming it.
Yet, from the most responsible to the simplest, everyone in the East is intimately and sincerely taken to participate at the given moment in the realization of this common goal, the elimination of Russia.
For all people coming from the most remote corners of the Caucasus, Turkestan, Idel-Ural, and Crimea, there is always a position to be filled in these fraternal countries, by these abilities. Today in the East we meet millions and millions of people who came from these countries in different circumstances and times.
There are many political and social organizations working secretly or openly in different parts of the East for the national causes of the Caucasus, Turkestan, Idel-Ural, and Crimea. Often the action of these organizations is inspired by the movements coming from those in Turkey. Thus the Representatives of the Japanese Government will be able, after agreement with the Heads of the organizations existing in Turkey and the establishment by common accord of definite programs, to arrive at the realization of the following aims:
1- to morally mobilize all emigrants from the Caucasus, Turkestan, Idel-Ural, and Crimea living in Turkey, neighboring Arab countries, Persia, Afghanistan, and India.
2. This movement is directed in the direction of the liberation and well-being of the Turkish nations, in case it is well ordered, to satisfy Turkey which will therefore act on its Eastern allies for this purpose.
3.- this movement being in the regions that are on the border of the Caucasus and Turkestan, will provide the means of entering into direct contact with the natives and will allow the rapid organization of the national struggle in the countries.
We have taken upon ourselves the mission of expounding the situation succinctly and clearly to our Great Friends in the Far East, whose direct and indirect initiatives show the interest they have in our national cause, with the idea that this will open an era of powerful action, and we are sure that this will be the stage of a very great program conceived and prepared long in advance and already in full execution.
If the creation of Greater Mongolia is realized as a result of the formation of the Manchu Empire, under the aegis and powerful effort of Japan, there will be an absolute necessity to create an allied state, Greater Turkestan, and a strong Caucasus.
Thus the movement beginning in the Far East will end, by the shortest and freest route, in the Near East and thus the freedom of the East will be an accomplished fact.
At no time in history has there been an opportunity, as it is today, to resolve simply and effectively, by common agreement and in solidarity, the real and true concerns of the Asian Nationals, whose initial movement was triggered in Japan?
The enemy is common, it is ours as much as that of all humanity.
However, a little more than a decade earlier, Haydar Bammat had written a letter to a Polish diplomat on a similar issue, stating the following:
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The other day I met with Mr. Kandelaki (the Minister of Finance of the Georgian government) and learned that the money intended for me had not yet been sent back.
Since I do not know the technique of this matter and admit that you were not notified in time of my refusal, I consider it necessary to inform you that I did not consider it possible for myself to take advantage of the kind attention of your government.
Dr. Sultanov told me that he asked you to come to Paris and hoped that you would find it useful to see us. I personally very much wanted this meeting, since I did not have the pleasure of seeing you in September. I hoped that in a personal conversation, it would be easier for me to explain to you the reasons for my refusal, which was caused by considerations of a fundamental nature.
As a Caucasian patriot who played a certain role in the liberation movement of his region, I cannot help but appreciate the help that Poland provides us in the difficult times that our homeland is experiencing. But a duty of honor, a duty of simple decency, forbids me to take advantage of this assistance, in the absence of confidence that the material sacrifices to which the Polish government agrees will really be dedicated to the cause of the Caucasian Confederation, or, at least, will serve to create a truly authoritative pan-Caucasian organization... I am afraid that, given the existing relationships between the various Caucasian organizations, given the completely arbitrary structure of the Independence Committee (in Constantinople), given the absence of an organically connected center in Paris, and most importantly, given your lack of a principled and firm position in assessing the originality of Caucasian organizations, to provide assistance to various disunited groups, your assistance can only serve the personal interests of individual figures, and will not bring any benefit to the cause, but will rather cause harm, since it will increase the already rather acute friction between the Caucasian groups...
I do not know whether I should tell you that the idea of the Caucasian Confederation belongs to the mountaineers. It was put forward by us already at the end of 1917, and at the beginning of 1918, I appointed it as the chairman of the mountaineer delegation at the peace conference in Trebizond (the conference between Turkey and the Transcaucasian government). Since then we have tried to implement this idea everywhere and always, invariably encountering opposition of a principled nature from the Armenians and repeated sabotage from the Georgian Mensheviks… It would be easy for me to prove this with documentary evidence.
Therefore, I ask you to believe that if today I allow myself to express thoughts that may be unpleasant to you, I am not guided by any personal motives. I am afraid, as a long-standing and convinced supporter of the Caucasian Confederation, that Poland, which shares our point of view on this issue and is ready to make heavy sacrifices for us, is poorly informed about the mistakes that have been made, which may compromise good for it and dear to us ideas and undertakings...
I have already had the opportunity to express my opinion to you during a personal meeting that in the struggle for the liberation of their homeland, serious and honest political organizations can take advantage of the material assistance of a friendly power whose political interests correspond to the goals and objectives of the organization, on one, however, indispensable condition - the organization, first of all, must be responsible, it must enjoy the full confidence of the assisting power, it must be completely independent in its work...
When this condition is absent, when some members of the organization impose themselves, given the services they have rendered, as private agents of the organization that has arranged for you, or given a completely incorrect assessment of their role and importance in connection with the merits of their ancestors, while others, proven figures, under the influence of various intrigues and unverified rumors, are taken under suspicion and designated for exclusion, such a stifling atmosphere is created in which healthy political work becomes very difficult, and scope opens up for the operations of agents who are unscrupulous in their means.
I am afraid that in the Caucasian Committee of Independence, at least in its Mountain Section, not all is well, I am afraid that the political base on which its members stand has not been sufficiently clarified by you. These fears are shared by our delegation (that is, Chermoev and me. The 3rd member, Gaidarov, in Anatolia – I do not doubt that he is in solidarity with us), the Paris Committee of Emigrants of the Republic of the North Caucasus, temporarily carrying out the functions of the Central Political Bureau of all our emigration in Europe and America…, the Revolutionary Democratic Party of the Highlanders in Prague and all our former ministers and members of parliament. However, the Highlander Section of the Caucasian Committee of Independence is only a part of the whole. – If only Even if we were satisfied with its composition, I would not consider that the work was done correctly. A radical reorganization of all Caucasian political institutions abroad is needed.
We, the highlanders, believe that having said the words “Caucasian Confederation”, we must draw an honest conclusion from this principle and create, as the executive body of this Confederation, a single Caucasian Center, to which all national organizations, both official and conspiratorial, of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the North Caucasus would be subordinated.
We are not at all encroaching on our delegations, which exist formally and are recognized partly de jure and partly in fact – they can exist perfectly well and bring possible benefit to our cause. The center we are talking about should be in the wings – it should exist in fact, for ourselves, for the unity of Caucasian thought and action. So that, finally, we ourselves stop suspecting each other of insincerity, so that we can put an end to separate actions and efforts, which are so disastrous for the Caucasus.
I address this letter to you personally and confidentially and I speak to you in the language of a like-minded person and friend, since I know your concept. I believe that you could, using your connections in Georgian circles and your position in your own department, render an invaluable service to the Caucasus if you put pressure on the Georgian Mensheviks, in the sense of creating a single Caucasian Center.
At present, there is complete unanimity between us, the highlanders and the Azerbaijanis, on this issue; there are also activists among the Georgian national democrats who stand on this platform. But we have no relations with the Mensheviks. We haven't been able to come to an agreement yet.
If such a Center were really created, your material and immoral assistance would indeed be very appropriate and undoubtedly fruitful. Now, when you support the low-authority Constantinople Committee and, in parallel, the Parisian organizations, the agreements that these groups will collude with will be more of a paper nature than a business one… These agreements will only be motives that, while creating the illusion of unity for you, will involve you in completely inappropriate expenses, and in a few months will disappoint you and force Poland to turn away from the Caucasus. This is precisely what I'm afraid of. Defects made in the organization's case can have serious consequences. For us, the consequences, in a general political sense.
It is a great pity that you did not come, my comrades in the mountain organization ask me to convey to you their ardent desire to see you. If you could stop in Paris in transit, that would be extremely helpful.
It is difficult to set out in a letter all the details of such a truly complex issue as ours.
I warmly shake your hand and await your reply.
Sincerely yours,
The difference between the two letters in style was very striking. In fact, relations with Japan did not develop as Said Shamil had hoped. Such a method, which attracted the Polish government in the first half of the 1920s, did not have the same effect on the Japanese Imperial Government. The fact that a copy of this letter was in Haydar Bammat's personal archive was a clear indication that Japanese diplomats had informed Haydar Bammat about their communications with Said Shamil. As a matter of fact, relations between the Japanese government and Kavkaz developed rapidly and a treaty of alliance was drafted between the parties. The treaty, drawn up on January 31, 1938, was initialed on February 4, 1938:
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1. Since Japan treats with sincere sympathy the aspirations of the peoples of the Caucasus to free themselves from foreign oppression and create their own independent state, General O[shima Hiroshi] will render every assistance to Mr. B[ammat Haydar] in his activities aimed at creating an independent and united Caucasian state.
2. General O[shima Hiroshi] will not enter into any agreements with any other Caucasian political figures and groups without prior agreement with Mr. B[ammat Haydar].
3. Mr. B[ammat Haydar] undertakes not to enter into any agreements with other states, except for Germany and Turkey, without prior agreement with General O[shima Hiroshi]
4. As soon as the political situation permits, General O[shima Hiroshi] will take measures to ensure that this agreement is clothed in the form of an official state act.
5. This agreement will be kept in the file of Lieutenant Colonel U[sui].
While the cooperation between Haydar Bammat and Japan was based on a joint victory over the Soviets in the upcoming war and the independence of the Caucasus, the non-aggression pact (Molotov - Ribbentrop Pact) signed between Hitler and Stalin a week before the start of the war was a huge surprise for everyone. Although the activities of the Kavkaz Group in Germany were suspended, with the knowledge and agreement of Nazi Germany, Kavkaz's ties with the Imperial Japanese government continued uninterruptedly behind the scenes.
Cem Kumuk
Istanbul, February 12, 2025