Minutes of the twenty-first Meeting of the sub-committee, held in the Secretary's Room, Great George Street, S.W.1. on Tuesday, 20th April, 1943 at 10.15 am

3. INFORMATION FOR THE RUSSIANS. THE SUB-COMMITTEE had before them -. (a) a Minute by the Secretary, JIC/466/43 dated 14th April, 1943, covering a Minute by the Director of Naval Intelligence, stating that Admiral Kharlamov had asked whether he might be given a copy of "TORCH" orders; (b) a Minute by the Secretary, JIC/480/43 dated 18th April, 1943, covering a Minute by the Director of Military Intelligence relating to a request by General Martel for authority to communicate figures of our casualties to the Russians. (a). THE CHAIRMAN suggested that it might be wise o to respond to the Russian request in view of the signs of ns towards us. stated that n he proposed ideration. uggestion uld be ans, the uggested that in ound. The Insert attached omparisons between their own sacrifices and ours and might comment that conscription was not in force in the Dominions. "The Sub-Committee:- (i) Approved in principle the suggestion that this information should be communicated to the Russians, subject to agreement by the British Military Mission in Russia and the American Authorities. (ii) Instructed the Secretary to telegraph to the British military Mission in Moscow informing them of the request that had been made and inviting their views. (iii) Instructed the Secretary, in the event of the British Military Mission in Moscow agreeing that this information should be conveyed to the Russians to telegraph to Washington to invite agreement to the proposal." THE SUB-COMMITTEE:- (iv) Instructed the Secretary to draft a report to the Chiefs of Staff Committee, recommending that the casualty figures should be communicated to the Russians, but that General Martel should be invited to stress the magnitude of the British war effort as a whole, which should not be measured by casualties alone. -2-