Posjet britanskih parlamentaraca Zagrebu u studenome 1945. godine
The Visit of British Parliamentarians to Zagreb in November 1945

Summary/Abstract: The Visit of British Parliamentarians to Zagreb in November 1945” In the autumn of 1945 a series of fateful events occurred in Yugoslavia which determined the direction of its political development: the minister of foreign affairs Ivan Šubašić and other members of the federal government submitted their resignations, the opposition abstained from the first postwar elections, which resulted in their total domination by the Peoples’ Front, and in the first session of the new parliament a republic was proclaimed. These developments had come to pass despite the displeasure of the western powers, particularly Britain and the United States. Alongside these matters, the issue of the boundary with Italy was also pressing, which interested both of the western powers who supported the Italian side. Relations between the western powers and Yugoslavia, until recently allies in the anti-fascist coalition, were thus very tense at the time the British Parliamentarians – mostly Labour Party members – came to visit Yugoslavia at the invitation of the government. Even though the visit was of an unofficial nature, and the public was made aware of its existence only later, its propaganda value for the Yugoslav side was great, because it seemed to indicate that the Members of Parliament of a great western power supported the existing regime. This visit raised concerns in British political circles and in some sectors of public opinion, however, as some felt that not enough information was made known about the visit of such a high-ranking delegation, while other circles protested because they felt the Yugoslavian regime could not be supported because it failed to live up to British expectations. The visit led to difficulties in the Foreign Office as well, because the Parliamentarians accused the staff of the consulate in Zagreb of prejudice and a lack of professionalism in its relations with the new organs of government. The disagreement arose particularly over diametrically opposed reports concerning the conditions in prisons. The government had allowed the Parliamentarians to tour the OZNA jail in Zagreb during their visit. The Foreign Office later reconstructed these events and established that the government had probably prepared a quick visit for the delegation. However, the issue was not raised further in order to maintain good diplomatic relations between Britain and Yugoslavia.

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