The Nazi-Soviet Non-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 & France Britain:  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…  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 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 , 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 USSR Deal 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?