[net.politics] US armed force in Russia in 1920's

orb@whuxl.UUCP (SEVENER) (04/04/85)

> > (paraphrasing, as I deleted the 1st line by mistake) In WWII, the US
> > sent an armed force to their country (USSR),
> > whereas they have never done the same
> > to us.  According to the official Communist line we are "Imperialist agressors"
> >        tim sevener  whuxl!orb
> >  "We had to destroy that planet in order to save it!"
> 
> Maybe someone can correct me if I'mn wrong, but I don't think that US
> (or British, for that matter) troops were ever sent to the USSR in WWII.
> soil during WWII were the Germans.
> 
> Bob Schleicher
> ihuxk!rs55611
 
Too bad you deleted what I did say.  What I said was that the US sent
an armed force to help defeat the Red army during the Russian Civil War
in the 20's.  The American contingent was part of a group which included
British and other European troops: sent to help stamp out the
"Red menace".  Most Americans don't know this fact: but then most
Americans are taught little in general about our occupations of various
countries in Latin America, the slaughter of workers while unions were being
organized, etc.  Such facts are rather unpleasant to the powers that be.
You can look it up in any history book, specifically it is mentioned in
the book "What About the Russians?" which gives another more detailed
reference.
             tim sevener  whuxl!orb

wetcw@pyuxa.UUCP (04/05/85)

In reference to US troops in Russia in the 1920s, yes we did
send an expedition.  It was not, however, to combat the Red
Menace.  The force was sent, along with units from
France, England, Finland, China, Japan, and a few others I
don't recall, to protect and defend the Trans-Siberian
railroad from being destroyed by either the Whites or
the Reds.  There were 11 countries involved in the
incident.  Since the US had made a major contribution
to the building of the railroad, and since it was
seen as one of the most important rail links in the
world, all of these countries had a stake in its
preservation.  The US contingent was stationed in the
Lake Biakal region on the edge of the Siberian wastes.
Other countries were stationed all along the right
of way to Port McArthur (Vladivostok).  

I knew an old gentleman in our town who, as a
young shavetail, was stationed in Irkutsk during
this time.  I believe the unit we sent was the
21st Infantry Division.  The political and military
ramifications of this adventure were enormous. 
Both the reds and whites used the railroad to
move back and forth.  They both used huge
armoured trains with all sorts of guns bristling
out of them.

For an interesting story, read a book called
"Eleven Flags", a historical account in fictionalized
form.
T. C. Wheeler