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The Nazi-Soviet Pact 1939 - Coggle Diagram
The Nazi-Soviet Pact 1939
Stalin's fears
Since Hitler came to power in 1933, Stalin had been worried about the German threat to the USSR
In addition, Stalin could not reach any kind of lasting agreement with Britain and France in the 30s.
The USSR joined the League of Nations in 1934 in the hope of finding some security from Germany.
All he saw was its lack of action over Abyssinia and the Spanish Civil War.
Politicians in Britain and France had not resisted German rearmament in the 1930s.
Some British even saw Germany as a possible strong ally against communism, which they considered a bigger threat to Britain than Hitler.
Stalin fears and suspicions grew in the mid-1930s
He signed a treaty with France in 1935, where it stated that France would help the USSR if Germany was to invade it.
Stalin wasn’t sure he could trust France to stick to it, as they had already failed in stopping Hitler from moving his troops into the Rhineland.
The Munich agreement in 1938.
Settlement reached by Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy that permitted German annexation of the Sudetenland, in western Czechoslovakia.
Stalin was not consulted about it.
He concluded that France and Britain were powerless to stop Hitler or, even worse, that they were happy for Hitler to take over Eastern Europe and the USSR.
Stalin's negotiations
Stalin was prepared to talk with Britain and France about an alliance against Hitler.
The 3 countries met in in March 1939
Chamberlain was reluctant to commit Britain, as he was suspicious of the USSR.
According to Stalin, France and Britain made things worse by guaranteeing Poland that they would defend it if it was invaded by Germany
Chamberlain meant it as a warning to Hitler, while Stalin saw it as support for one of the USSR’s potential enemies.
Negotiations between Britain, France and the USSR continued through the spring and summer of 1939.
However, Stalin also received visits from the Nazi foreign minister, Ribbentrop, where they discussed a very different deal:
The Nazi Soviet Pact.
Nazi-Soviet pact
Why did Hitler signed the pact?
Hitler: Hitler regarded it as his greatest achievement. It gave him half of Poland and ensured he would not face a war on two fronts if he invaded Poland.
The Russians were promised they could have the rest of Poland as well as the Baltic states. However, Hitler didn’t intend to keep this promise for long.
On August 23 1939, Hitler and Stalin signed the Non-aggression pact and announced the terms to the world.
They agreed not to attack one another.
Privately they also agreed to divide Poland between them.
Why did Stalin sign the pact?
It gave him some territory that used to be part of Russia, but that wasn’t the main point.
Stalin just wanted time.
Stalin didn’t expect Hitler to keep his end of the deal, he knew he was Hitler’s number one target. But he didn’t trust Britain and France either (they weren’t strong enough or reliable allies against Hitler).
Stalin expected to have to fight Germany alone at some point, so what he really needed was time to build up the USSR forces.
Consequences
The pact cleared the way for Hitler to invade Poland on September 1st 1939, where they met little resistance.
Britain and France demanded Hitler to withdraw from Poland or they would declare war.
Hitler was certain that Britain and France were just bluffing, and would not actually do anything.
Hitler next move would be to attack against the USSR. However, to Hitler’s surprise, Britain and France kept their pledge.
On September 3 they declared war on Germany.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=oOlOXIundc8&feature=share