Сталин и Ванда Василевская: лимитированный диалог (1940)
In 1939–1940, Wanda Wasilewska, a relatively unknown Polish writer who accepted Soviet citizenship has been crowned as a ‘prodigy Soviet writer’. Stalin’s interest in Wasilewska was motivated by the fact that the so-called Polish problem gradually came to occupy more attention of the Soviet government in terms of strategic planning. The Kremlin was out to find new, constructive ideas in this area. Wasilewska’s initiative aimed at limiting the discrimination of the Polish minority (or more precisely: the part of Western-Ukrainian Poles who were loyal to the USSR), raising the problem of the Polish establishment and the uncovering of symbols that were optimistic for the Poles, were all auspicious decisions for the Soviet government. Nevertheless, it is clear that Wasilewska’s contacts with Stalin — who suddenly accorded her with trust — could not significantly influence the attitude of the local authorities towards the Polish minority
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