Colonel Qaddafi of Libya has sent a congratulatory telegram to Yanaev.
Moscow Echo radio station is back on the air.
2:50 P.M. According to the Russian Information Agency, the Emergency Committee has issued arrest warrants for the USSR People’s Deputies Sergei Belozerstev and Oleg Kalugin.
3:00 P.M. General Kobets sends the Supreme Commander of Russia’s Cossack Forces, Mikhail Nesmachnyi, to the Mounted Regiment of the Mosfilm Film Studios to take possession of horses and weapons needed by the Cossacks for the protection of the legitimate government of Russia.
USSR Minister of Environment and Natural Resources Management Vorontsov and USSR Minister of Chemical and Oil Refining Industry Khadzhiev sign orders transferring their respective ministries to the jurisdiction of the President of the RSFSR “temporarily, until power is restored to the President of the USSR.”
3:09 P.M. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation issues a diplomatic note disclaiming responsibility for any acts by the Emergency Committee and requests foreign governments to freeze gold and currency reserves and cargo until an extraordinary Congress of People’s Deputies of the USSR convenes.
3:15 P.M. President Bush calls Yeltsin and asks him about the steps taken by the Russian leadership to restore order. Bush expresses unqualified support for Gorbachev and Yeltsin on the part of G7 nations and praises Yeltsin for his courage.
3:26 P.M. Inside the International Section of the CPSU Central Committee, instructions are circulated on preparing secret documents and internal memos for destruction.
4:00 P.M. In Moscow, the rally outside the White House ends and the movement of military units intensifies. The Moscow Soviet receives a report that the storming of its building is scheduled for 8:00 P.M. The mayor and city soviet call upon Muscovites to go there and stand witness to any bloodshed.
The formation of self-defense units outside the White House continues.
4:02 P.M. Editors of banned newspapers jointly prepare a sixteen-page issue of Obshchaia gazeta.
4:11 P.M. It is raining in Moscow. The Russian Information Agency reports that troops loyal to the Emergency Committee will attempt to storm and seize the White House this evening. A part of these military forces are reportedly near the center of Moscow and are armed with sniper rifles equipped with night vision scopes.
4:28 P.M. Moscow Mayor Gavriil Popov holds a meeting to warn all Muscovites about the criminal penalties for those who attempt to create alternative organs of power on the basis of orders of the Emergency Committee.
4:39 P.M. Former USSR Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze, speaking at a meeting outside the White House, says that “the dictatorship will not succeed.”
4:51 P.M. Sergei Stankevich announces on the radio of the Russian parliament—Radio Russia—that the storming of the building may be imminent. He calls for full readiness and requests all women to leave the building.
4:55 P.M. Boris Yeltsin meets with Eduard Shevardnadze to discuss joint efforts to restore law and order in the country.
5:00 P.M. Prime Minister John Major of Great Britain telephones Yeltsin to inform him that his government is not even considering the question of recognizing the Emergency Committee. In response to Yeltsin’s words about the planned attack on the White House, Major assures Yeltsin that were this to happen, the world community would act most decisively against the putschists.
The Japanese government has announced the suspension of trade and economic cooperation with the USSR.
A column of a hundred tanks enters Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, and proceeds to a neighborhood where the Russian-speaking population is concentrated.
5:19 P.M. The President of the Republic of Moldova, Mircea Snegur, has issued a decree declaring the Emergency Committee illegitimate and its acts illegal.
5:25 P.M. According to the Russian Information Agency, a snap poll of Muscovites has been taken on August 20. Out of 1,500 polled, 10 percent supported the introduction of a state of emergency and 79.4 percent were opposed. Only 3.9 percent expressed confidence in Yanaev as Acting President; 2.3 percent in Prime Minister Pavlov. In addition: 53 percent believed that Gorbachev must resume his duties as USSR President; 82 percent supported Yeltsin; 72 percent wanted order in the country restored; 64 percent believed this should be done within the constitutional framework; and 59 percent believed the actions of the Emergency Committee would exacerbate chaos and disorder.
5:28 P.M. According to news reports, the defense of the White House is to be reinforced with six battalions from the Leningrad region as soon as air transport can be arranged.
At the meeting of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of Russia, the storming of the White House was judged to be highly likely.
5:44 P.M. Yeltsin has addressed the crowd outside the White House. He says the junta will stop at nothing to hold on to power because they have everything to lose. He notes the state of emergency has only been introduced in those places where supporters of democracy hold power. He calls for calm and asks people to refrain from any acts of provocation against the military.
5:48 P.M. Yeltsin assumes the responsibilities of Commander-in-Chief of all the armed forces on the territory of the Russian Republic until Gorbachev resumes his duties as President of the USSR.
12:00–6:00 P.M. A meeting is being held at the office of the USSR Deputy Minister of Defense Vladislav Achalov for the purpose of preparing operational plans for attacking the White House. Among those present are: Vladislav Achalov; Pavel Grachev, Commander of the Airborne Paratrooper Forces; Boris Gromov, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs; Genii Ageev, First Deputy Chairman of the KGB; General Viktor Karpukhin, the Commander of the “Alpha” unit; and General Boris Beskov, the Commander of the KGB unit “B.” They are joined later by General Aleksandr Lebed and Dmitrii Yazov. The attack plan, code-named “Thunder,” was to be carried out at 3:00 A.M.
6:00 P.M. Speaking over the White House intercom system, Yeltsin adviser Sergei Stankevich reports that, according to reliable sources, Gorbachev and his family are being held at the presidential dacha in Foros in the Crimea.
There are two divisions in Moscow: an armored and a motorized infantry division. Two special police units are also stationed in the city. The troops are grouped at Kuntsevo, the city center, the Kirov metro station, and on Leningrad Prospect. Oleg Poptsov, the head of the Russian Republic Television and deputy of the RSFSR Supreme Soviet, calls on the residents of Moscow and officials of transport enterprises to block the advance of these troops by forming a ring around the White House.
Volunteers outside the White House are being instructed in self-defense, including the use of gas masks and Molotov cocktails. The defenders are asked to form into units of ten. Women have been asked to fraternize with soldiers. Some women carry signs saying “Soldiers, do not fire at mothers.”
Leningrad’s deputy mayor, Rear Admiral Viacheslav Shcherbakov, has been appointed by Yeltsin to be Commander of the Leningrad Military District.
6:25 P.M. Lukianov informs Yeltsin’s aides that he has spoken with Yazov and Kriuchkov and both denied plans to storm the Russian parliament.
According to Yeltsin’s Press Office, Yanaev telephoned Yeltsin soon thereafter. Yeltsin: “What are you planning—to seize the White House by force? Do you realize the consequences of this action for you both in this country and abroad?” Yanaev: “I know nothing about such an order. I will make inquiries, and if there is such an order, I shall rescind it.”
7:00 P.M. In Moscow, 40 tanks move from the direction of Kalinin Prospect. In addition to the KGB troops stationed at the Hotel Rossiia, there are reports about the movements of an armored tank division and airborne combat troops. Meanwhile, radio broadcasts continue from the White House.