Lieut.-Colonel J. WARDasked the Secretary of State for War whether 18 British officers were taken prisoners during the retreat of the British Military Mission from Siberia; whether only 11 of such officers are being released under the O'Grady agreement; and, if so, can he give any information of the whereabouts and condition of the other seven, and why they are not being released?
Mr. HARMSWORTHThe answer to the first part of the hon. and gallant Member's question is in the negative. Hitherto, I have only received a report to the effect that twelve officers and six other ranks were missing in Siberia. Mr. MacCullagh, who has recently arrived in Finland from Siberia reports that some of these are at Krasnoyarsk and others at Tomsk, but they have not yet all been identified. As regards the second part of the question, all these prisoners of war are due for release under the agreement made with M. Litvinoff, and in reply to the urgent representations made by His Majesty's Government, the latter has replied that steps have been taken by the Soviet Government to expedite their transportation to Moscow with a view to their repatriation; but owing to the state of affairs in Siberia it is difficult to obtain accurate information. The third part of the question does not therefore arise.