Katyn Documents (II)

Extract from Report No. 13 of the Proceedings of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the VKP(B) , March 5, 1940.

All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks). CENTRAL COMMITTEE

com. [comrade]* Beria

№ P13/144.
5 March 1940.

Extract from Report No. 13 of the Proceedings of the Politburo of the TSk [Central Committee] from ___ 193_
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144.- Issue, NKVD USSR.

I. To propose NKVD USSR:

1) the matter concerning the 14700 former Polish officers, officials, landowners, policemen, intelligence officials, gendarmes, settlers and prison guards located in prisoner of war camps,

2) as well as the matter concerning the 11000 members of various K-R [counter-revolutionary], espionage and saboteur organizations, former landowners, factory owners, former Polish officers, officials and deserters, who have been arrested and placed in prisons in the western regions of the Ukraine and Belorussia -

- be considered by special order for the application of the highest method of punishment - execution.

II. Consideration that this matter be carried out without appeal on the part of the arrested and without presentation of the charges, the conclusions of the investigation, and the statement of indictment in the following manner:

a) against persons located in the prisoner of war camps, - according to information, presented by the Administration of Prisoner of War Affairs NKVD USSR,

b) against arrested persons - according to information presented by the NKVD USSR [Ukrainian] and NKVD BSSR [Belorussian]

III. Consideration that judgment in this matter be decided by a troika, consisting of comrades Merkulov, Kabulov and Bashtakov (Head of the 1st Special Section of the NKVD USSR).

SECRETARY TsK [Central Committee]

*[All italics added by skoblin]