The Security Aspects of the Ukrainian People’s Republic in Relations with Germany and Austria-Hungary in March-April 1918

• Main Authors: Olexander Nazarchuk, Pavlo Satskyi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Department of Modern and Contemporary History of Foreign Countries 2019-06-01
• Series: Європейські історичні студії
• Subjects: Loan; the rate of the German mark; Council of People’s Ministers of Ukrainian People’s Republic; payment of salaries to employees of railways; occupation forces
• Online Access: http://eustudies.history.knu.ua/the-security-aspects-of-the-ukrainian-people-s-republic-in-relations-with-germany-and-austria-hungary-in-march-april-1918/

In this article the research of the problem of the relations between the government of Ukrainian People’s Republic and the leadership of German occupational troops in the support of the transport system work and the post-offices in the period of time of March-April 1918 has been made. The study is based on archival documents that cover the position of the leaders of the Ukrainian People’s Republic with respect to the German command’s measures to ensure the operation of transport and communication as well as the financial aspects of relations with the German occupation command. The collapse of the financial system of the former Russian Empire and the military breakup led to a difficult situation with the railway and the post offices. However, the stable work of these institutions was a principal question for the security of Ukrainian People’s Republic as well as for the German occupational leadership. The most acute aspect was the question of paying salaries to the railway employees as well as to the employees of the post offices. Disregarding this question could lead to strikes. The German leadership suggested to pay salaries to the employees of the railway and the post offices on their own, but this offer was categorically rejected by Ukrainian People’s Republic because it could have led to the absence of security in the country. More over, over the problem of the functioning of the transport system and the communication system the complicated negotiations between the government of Ukrainian People’s Republic and German representatives in terms of the loan took place. Trade, financial and credit relations between the UPR and Germany and Austria-Hungary should have been built around the problem of compensation payments to postal and railway workers. In March-April 1918 the fight between the government of Ukrainian People Republic and the leadership of the German occupational troops over the actual influence on the transport and communication system in Ukrainian People’s Republic took place. In fact, the question of the right for the sovereignty arose for the Council of Ministers of Ukrainian People’s Republic to make the fundamentals of the state security of Ukraine independently. The problems of relations between the UPR government and the occupation command requires a deeper study in view of their practical importance, in particular, in the context of consistent formation of inter-state relations in the finance, transport, and communication sectors as a phenomenon prevailing in the 20th century.