The new claims of the Republic of German-Austria are extremely troublesome to the new Czechoslovak government. It is extremely important that all of Bohemia and Moravia be included in the new Czechoslovak state. Therefore, the recent attempt by ethnic Germans living in the western fringes of Bohemia to join German-Austria will not be tolerated. As such, President Masaryk and the Czech National Council have ordered Czechoslovak units, those not currently in Slovakia that is, to enforce order in what the Germans call the Sudetenland. There is no formal military presence in this region so the occupation is likely to be simply a formality. Regardless, the soldiers have been ordered to take no reprisals against the ethnic German population and also to take up defensive positions on the Bavarian and Austrian borders. The territorial unity and viability of Czechoslovakia must be ensured. To allow these territories to fall outside Czechoslovakia would be put the country in dire straits. While the Czech Army will be entering western Bohemia no matter what, the Czech government will be informing the great powers of its action.