Rhea Kakar's List: Non-Agression Pact

The Nazi Soviet pact, also known as the Non-Aggression Pact, was signed on August 23,1939 between Hitler and Stalin. This was a strategic move by the two countries to protect themselves from each other and to further their own personal motives. According to this pact both the countries would not attack each other and would also remain neutral in case any of them decided to go to war. The public was shocked at a communist country forming an alliance with fascists, as they were unaware of the secret protocols and political intentions that were behind this temporary alliance that would prove to be a huge tipping point in history as it led to the commencement of World War II.

*Already Known Information*

- After Hitler took over Czechoslovakia, Great Britain and France grew anxious and asked the Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin to become part of an alliance against Germany (Stalin joined the League of Nations, even though he did not fully trust the Western democracies due to their fear of communism and excluding the Soviet Union from any major decision. Stalin feared that the Western powers would instigate the likely possibility of Hitler going against them.)

-Soviets required that any agreement with the West guarantee the independence of Poland, Finland, and the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania (All of these countries apart from Lithuania had a common border with the Soviet Union.)

- Stalin also demanded military alliance with these countries so that this would help defend and protect the Soviet Union in case of German invasion. This demand by Stalin was not appealing to the Baltic states. This is because this would mean that the Soviet Union could use their land to push back attacks. Due to several disagreements, there was no final conclusion that was met.

*Already Known Info - Paraphrased*

Danzig and the Polish Corridor

The conflict between Poland and Germany over the sea port city of Denzig and the Polish Corridor became the reason for the beginning of the World War 11.

Both Poland and Germany had the right to use the strategically important port city of Denzig which was located on the mouth of the Vistula River on the coast of the Baltic Sea. A strip of land called the ‘Polish Corridor’ allowed Poland access to this port. This right was given to them by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 to provide Poland Direct access to the Baltic Sea. The Polish Corridor ran through a region called German Prussia which was under the rule of the Germans. After World War 1 Germany began to resent the use of the Polish Corridor by Poland and it became a source of conflict amongst them. Meanwhile Denzig started becoming a strong hold of the Germans with a large German population and the Nazi Party’s hold over the city government became strong.

On September 1st, 1939, Hitler formally laid claim over Denzig and simultaneously launched an attack on Poland. Being a strong military force with latest weapons the German army started to destroy Poland and marched towards Warsaw and the Polish heartland. Polish troops could not match the military might of the Germans but still put up a strong but feeble defense against the German attack. At this point Great Britain and France could not bear to see the unjust attack on Poland by the Germans and decided to stand by them, thereby declaring a war on Germany. This ultimately led to the commencement of World War 1.

The Nazi- Soviet Pact

The Nazi Soviet pact, was an agreement made in August 1939 between Germany and the Soviet Union According to this pact both the countries would not attack each other and would also remain neutral in case any of them went to war.

By making each other an ally they both were buying time and protecting themselves from each other. Germany’s motive was to make Russia an ally in case they were attacked by Great Britain and France and Russia hoped to divert Germany’s attention to the western countries so that they could build their military power against an inevitable attack by the Germans. They established spheres of control in the eastern European countries, where by Germany would be have command over western Poland and Russia would have a hold over Eastern Poland, the province of Bessarabia and the Baltic countries. This pact made Germany a strong military power.

CITATION:

Dyrek, Felix Dyrek. "Nazi Soviet Pact - Why Did Stalin Make a Pact With Hitler Rather Than an Alliance With Britain by Felix Dyrek." Scribd. Web. 21 Feb. 2012.

"A trade convention was signed between Germany and the USSR in August 1938. It was the basis of a

commercial agreement. The USSR was dependent on import of technology for the large-scale offensive against Japan on August 28, 1939. Germany allowed a credit of 200million Reichsmark to the USSR, which was used to buy investment goods from the Germans. As a quid pro quo the USSR was obligated to deliver commodities worth 180million Reichsmark." (Directly from website Document)

PARAPHRASED:

According to the Secret Protocol the two countries divided their influence on eastern European countries like Poland, Finland, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. Their was also an economic understanding between the two countries whereby Germany would give 200 million Reichsmark to the Soviet Union to buy finished goods. In return for that the Soviet Union would give them food and other materials worth 180 million Reichsmark. Long before signing this pact with Germany, Stalin wanted to be allied with Great Britain as he always knew that an attack on Russia by the Germans was inevitable.

CITATION:

Ambrose, Stephen E., and C L. Sulzberger. American heritage new history of World War II. New York: Viking, 1997. Print.

- Stalin suspected with good cause that Daladier’s and Chamberlain’s policy was to encourage Hitler’s embroilment with the Soviet Union by urging his attentions eastward across Czechoslovakia.

- In a century full of political surprises, this was the greatest. Free from the threat of the Red Army, Hiter’s demands for the return of the Polish Corridor increased. The French mobilized, sending their troops into the Maginot Line fortifications on their border with Germany. Britain also mobilized and finally began to re-arm. But gloom and disappointment swept London and Paris. Without the help of the United States and the Soviets, the British and French felt rightly, that they could not match Germany’s armed forced, the Wehrmacht.In the US, the cynosure for most eyes was the 1939 New York World’s Fair, with its trylong and perisphere, its “town of tomorrow,” its general Motors show, and a Japanese Shinto shirine enclosing a replica of the American Liberty Bell, made of diamonds and pearls. The news from Europe was indeed dark, but most Americans felt Europe was far away, a distant continent from which the US had sensibly withdrawn.

PARAPHRASED:

Stalin wanted to gain support because he knew that Hitler was planning to attack the Soviet Union. The Non-Aggression Pact was one which would help Stalin gain time and even resources to prepare for this inevitable attack. The Western powers did not want to support the Soviets and have an alliance with them due to the communist scare. Stalin suspected that this was a selfish move from the British and French so that they could help focus Hitler's attention Eastward. Many were shocked at the strange alliance that was made between Germany and the Soviet Union due to one being a fascist country and another being a communist. Hitler was further encouraged to take over the Polish Corridor because he was free from the threat of the Soviet army on the eastern front. The British and French felt as if they were no match for the German military. The United States ignored this issue for as long as it could. They felt that issues in Europe were extremely far away and did not affect them. However, if they stepped in earlier making an alliance with the Soviets and the British, World War II could have possibly been avoided all together. This is because Hitler's stance would have been immediately weakened and he could not have made any more action.

There were many surprising alliances that were made during the period between the two most tragic wars in history. The Non-Aggression Pact was seen to be the most shocking because the hatred that these two countries had towards each other. The Western powers were reluctant in supporting the Soviet Union, and in turn Stalin had to take action and make temporary peace with Hitler to buy time to prepare for an inevitable attack from the Nazi’s. Even though the Nazi-Soviet Pact was not what Stalin initially wanted, it ended up being beneficial to both powers. The Soviets gained influence in neighboring countries which would help protect them, and Hitler was extremely close to gaining the port city of Danzig in Poland that Germany lost in World War I when their country was divided. If the Western powers agreed upon alliance with the Soviets, the Nazi’s would have had to face a two front war and they would have been prevented from invading Poland and the Non-Aggression Pact, a major tipping point in world history, would have never been created which would have prevented the occurrence of World War II.