Reginald Teague-Jones

« [Concernant les 26 Commissaires de Bakou, date : 14/09/18] The Askhabad Committee [qui sera le Gouvernement Trans-Caspien menchevik fortement soutenu par les Britanniques] were not at all anxious to take over the prisoners and came and asked my advice. They also sent a wire to their Representative in Meshed, Dokhov, with instructions to try and persuade General Malleson to take over the prisoners and deport them to India. In reply, Malleson explained that it was very difficult to find the necessary guards to send them down to India and suggested that the Trans-Caspian authorities should find some other way of disposing of them. » (p. 120)

« The question occupying the minds of both the Turks and ourselves at the beginning of June 1918 was firstly whether the Bolshevik authorities in Trans-Caspia would attempt to oppose a Turkish advance eastwards of the Caspian, and secondly, if the Bolsheviks did not […], whether the British would be able to interpose any obstacle independently of the Bolsheviks.
The Bolsheviks did not know themselves what attitude to adopt. At one moment they were all for fighting the Turk. The next moment, the peace party, prompted of course by the Turkish and German money, would refuse to countenance any further fighting. » (p. 37)

« [Début juillet 1918] In Baku there were about five different governing bodies, none of which could pull together. There were the Bolsheviks, the Centro-Caspian, the Armenians, the Caspian Fleet and the anti-Bosheviks. The latter and the Armenians were all for fighting. The Bolsheviks were opposed to fighting. The Russian military commander, Bicherakov, was himself at the front and his supporters in Baku were doing their best to collect and send him assistance. The Bolsheviks were going about endeavouring to prevent any assistance being sent. » (p. 60)