History of the preparation of allied intervention in Siberia and Russian Far East in the mirror of the American newspaper The New York Times

This article analyses the publications of the American newspaper The New York Times and their role in coverage of preparation of the Allied intervention in Siberia and the Russian Far East. They provide an opportunity to clarify how the public opinion in Western countries regarding the events in Russia in general and Siberia in particular was forming with the help of the mass media. There are several subjects, which were of greatest interest for the U.S. mass media. The American press did not ignore the period between February and October revolutions in Russia. It is noted that the first mention of the intent to send troops in Russia began to appear on the pages of The New York Times in August 1917. After the USA entered World War I American ruling circles had been discussing the possibility of sending its troops to Russia to assist this country in the war against Germany. The situation related to Russian failures in the war was roused by newspapers that were publishing the information about the fall of the discipline in the Russian army and at the front. At the turn of 1917-1918 American newspapers were re-emerging a discussion on intervention in Siberia and the Russian Far East. On November 28 - December 3, 1917 in Paris a conference of the Supreme Council of the Entente was held. One of the issues was the possible intervention on the territory of Russia, but the Allies were not ready to work together at that time. First of all, the European powers worried about the possible strengthening of Japan's position in the region. The highest number of publications in this period was devoted to two related subjects: the problem of a possible Japanese intervention and the forcing of the situation around the Austro-German prisoners of war in Siberia. On the pages of The New York Times the contradictions between the United States and Japan on the issue of intervention were actively discussed. After the signing of the treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3, 1918 the Entente countries faced the problem of Russia's withdrawal from World War I and the collapse of the Eastern Front. The situation in Russia at that time was regarded as unstable. By early spring 1918 the publications of the U.S. newspapers emphasised the allied hesitation and delaying decisions about the beginning of intervention in Russia. It is noted that from the middle of March 1918 the tone of American publications about the possible Japanese intervention began to shift in the direction of its approval, and from the beginning of April 1918, due to the landing of Japanese and British troops, American newspapers began to cover the events of the intervention.

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