The Nazi-SovietNon-Aggression Pact

Described as one of the most amazing acts of modern diplomacy.

Soviet Foreign Policy

Enigma to the Western democracies. Was its purpose to spread Communism or to promote national interests?

Stalin was as much an opportunist as Hitler. Survival of Soviet Union & development of power

mattered most.

Moved from promoting non-cooperation with other political parties in foreign countries to encouraging participation in ‘popular front’ coalitions that were anti-Fascist.

Intervention in Spanish Civil War on Republican side.

Internally… Rapid industrialisation since the mid-1920s through a series of five-year plans.

Countryside in chaos as Stalin attempted to collectivise agriculture.

Number of internal purges as ‘politically unreliable’ individuals (ie. Stalin’s opponents) were either exiled to Siberian gulags or executed.

June 1937: Red Army officer corps were decimated by another purge, removing many of its best officers.

Background Stalin had been very worried about German

threats to the Soviet Union since 1933

Hitler openly stated that he wanted Soviet land for lebensraum

Hitler and Stalin detested each other & each other’s ideology

Stalin tried to create alliances with Britain & France but failed

1934: USSR joined the League of Nations as a guarantee against German aggression

The League Of Nations• However, Stalin

gained nothing from the League. Instead, he saw failures: German rearmament, Abyssinia, Spain, etc

Britain & FranceBritain: Some welcomed a

strong Germany as a force to fight Communism.

Communism seen as a bigger threat than Hitler France:

Stalin signed a pact with France in 1935

He did not trust the French to keep to it – esp. after Rhineland

The Munich Agreement Made Stalin even more wary

Stalin not consulted

Stalin concluded that Britain & France were powerless to stop Hitler or that they were happy for Hitler to take over Eastern Europe & USSR

“What? No chair for me?”

Next…Next… Despite this, Stalin still prepared to talk to

Britain & France about an alliance

The 3 countries met in March 1939 but Chamberlain was reluctant to commit Britain

Stalin believed that Britain & France made things worse by guaranteeing to defend Poland if it were attacked

Chamberlain saw the guarantee as a warning to Hitler but Stalin saw it as support for a potential enemy

Things not as they seem! Negotiations continued

between Britain, France & the USSR during spring/summer 1939. However, British delegates were too junior to commit to anything substantial.

However, Stalin was also secretly getting visits from Nazi Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop to discuss a Nazi-Soviet pact.

The deed is done! On August 23 1939, the USSR signed a ten

year pact with Germany.

Public articles: #2 – if either went to war against a third power, the other would remain neutral, #7 – agreement had immediate effect.

Secret protocols: Germany to receive W. Poland & Lithuania; USSR to receive E. Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Finland & Bessarabia (in Romania).

World was shocked as two arch-enemies promised not to attack each other.

Why did they sign the pact?

Hitler

Stalin

No two-front war since Poland would be easy to defeat, then turn West

When West was defeated, could deal with USSR

Avoids situation of Jul/Aug 1914

Recent events showed the West couldn’t be trusted/relied on

Britain’s guarantee to Poland made war inevitable – hopefully Germany would be too weakened to fight USSRDeal gave USSR a

slice of Poland & thus a security buffer against Germany USSR given time to strengthen its

own armed forces

Why did they sign?Why did they sign?