User:Antidiskriminator/Drafts of articles/Partisan collaboration with Ustaše


 * maybe useful hints can be found in this forum link

мањим домобранским гарнизонима.
 * Избегавајући сукобе са јединицама Осовине, партизани су успели да се споразумеју са

link to closing statement in process of rehabilitation of DM

http://www.odbrana.mod.gov.rs/odbrana-stari/vojni_casopisi/arhiva/VD_2014-jesen/66-2014-3-18-Zoric.pdf - Највећа драма одиграла се у Билећи, где су партизанима појачање упутиле усташе из Фазлагића Куле.

The Collaboration of Yugoslav Communists with Ustaše

According to McDowell, the Partisans were not exactly blameless on the issues on collaborations. Both Chetnik and Partisan groups collaborated with Axis to the extent the subordinate commanders felt their survival required.

During the World War II
The communist leader Josip Broz Tito and all members of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia left Belgrade on 16 September 1941 using documents issued to Tito by Dragoljub Milutinović who was voivode of Pećanac Chetniks. Since Pećanac at that time was already in full cooperation with Germans, this fact caused speculations that Broz left Belgrade with blessing of Germans because his task was to divide rebel forces, similar to Lenin's arrival to Russia. The historian Ivan Avakumović emphasized that it was also very unusual that Tito was escorted during his travel from Belgrade to rebel held teritory by person who would later be appointed as deputy of commander of SS Division Prinz Eugen.

At the beginning of December 1941 Boško Todorović requested support of Durmitor Partisan detachment to fight against Muslim units that committed numerous massacres of Serbs. The Partisans perceived Chetnik actions as the policy of revenge and sent their patrol to Borač, one of the strongest strongholds of Ustaše to "help them to organize appropriatelly together" only to be imprisoned, tortured and some of them eventually killed.

Report of Paul Bader
During February, March and April 1942 Communists and Ustaše attacked Dangić's Chetniks who had to slowly retreat from better equiped and stronger enemy. In his report sent on 20 April 1942 to senior command, German military governer of Serbia Paul Bader stated that Partisans do not fight against Ustaše but only against Dangić's Chetniks. On the same day he reported to Berlin that an agreement was concluded between Montenegrin Partisans, Croatian Communists and Ustaše not to attack each other.

Operation Hydra
On 4 February 1942 the British mission to Chetniks led by Terence Atherton disembarked on Montenegrin coast. They were soon captured by Partisans who kept them in their headquarters, first near Danilovgrad and then near Foča. The Partisans did not allow Atherton to continue his trip to Chetnik headquarter and invested significant efforts to convince him to change his pro-Chetnik position without much sucess. On 6 April 1942 the leader of Yugoslav communists Josip Broz wrote a letter to Moša Pijade expresing his concerns about Athertons mission. On 8 April 1942 issued a secret directive to the communist commesairs to warn them about Atherton. This secret directive was allegedly issued to the the Communist Party of Croatia. According to some anti-communist sources, Atherton was able to learn about contacts between Josip Broz and his most trusted men from the Central Committee of Croatia with leaders of the Independent State of Croatia. This sources emphasize that Partisans and Ustaše made an agreement according to which Ustaše allowed Partisans to enter Foča, supplied them with ammunition to fight against Chetniks and to stay in Foča for several months without any obstruction from Croatian side. Some pro-Chetnik sources even emphasize that Partisans killed Atherton because he had intention to inform his superiors about the cooperation between Partisans and Ustaše.

Chetnik offensive on Eastern Bosnia in 1943
When Chetniks launched attack Ustaše and German forces in Sokolac on 21 October 1943, the Partisans attacked them from rear. In his report Mihailović emphasized that this was the best proof that communists closely collaborate. The memoirs of the Slovenian academy member Aleksander Bajt underlined exact military operations in Eastern Bosnia (near Han Pijesak, Vlasenica and Srebrenica) and North-East of Sarajevo where Partisans supported Ustaše to fight against Bosnian Chetniks.