ROMANIAN DIPLOMACY IN THE STRUGGLE FOR BESSARABIA AT THE PARIS PEACE CONFERENCE (JANUARY — MAY 1919)

Abstract

The purpose of the article is the analysis of the activities of the Romanian representation at the Paris Conference during January-May 1919. The tasks are to characterize the content of the work of the Romanian diplomats in the direction of the defending the rights to Bessarabia and the determination of the position of the Entente as for the territorial independence of the region. The Romanian government realized that only the “permission” of the Entente would strengthen its presence in the region. Instead, the Entente treated ambiguously towards such aspirations of Romania. For the first, it was not forgotten for Bucharest the separate peace with the Fourth Alliance in 1918. For the second, the Entente did not take the politics of the terror of Romanian in Bessarabia. For the third, in January, 1919 the uprising began in Khotyn, which was greatly undermined the “figure of Romania as the peacemaker” in the region. The fourth factor was that the private leaders of the Entente who are maintained the White Guards and are defended the need for the rebirth of the integrity of Russia. From the first days of the being in Paris, the Romanian diplomats were sounded actively the question how the leaders of the Entente would see the future status of Bessarabia. At the same time, they realized that the situation was difficult for them. The Romanians were not included in the Supreme Soviet of the Conference and to the number of the special commissions. Besides, the fears were confirmed that the Entente would perceive doubtfully the annexation of Romania of the number of the territories. In additional facts of the influence to the position of the leaders of the conference were the representatives of the White Guards and the delegation of the UNR, which were proved the baselessness of the claims of Bucharest to Bessarabia. On the other hand, the Entente cannot ignore the Romanians, the Entente could not, because the last, like as the Poles, created the “sanitary border” for lands which were covered up the war as the past Russian Empire. In addition, it was they who had to become the counterbalance to Germany. The important factor was the fact that at that time, the Bolshevik’s slogans were surrounded actively in Europe which were called for the “world revolution”. Instead of it, Romania took on the anti-Bolshevik position, which was constantly underlined, its representatives in Paris, and it was the strong argument for its use with the inclusion to the structure of the kingdom of the new territories, including Bessarabia.