Russia: Foreign Relations

• What was Comintern

  March 1919 - stands for the Communist International

  An international communist organisation that aimed to promote Marxism and spread proletarian revolution around the world

  Lenin believed in international revolution and wanted communist support for Russia - very disliked in global affairs (political differences and surrender in war)

  Lenin called Third Comintern - Marx and Engels held first two - consistency of communism
• The First Comintern Congress - March 1919

  more then 50 delegates from 29 countries

  Evidence of success of Comintern despite civil war:

  Jan 1919 - Spartacist uprising in Germany with Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.

  Bienno Rosso/Two Red Years = took place in Italy after WW1 due to economic crisis - characterised by strikes and mass worker demonstrations as well as self-management experiments - land/factory occupation (communist ideals - collectivisation etc)
• Russo - Polish War

  Attempted to export revolution to Poland in 1920s

  expected Polish proletariat to support communism however only saw as another attempt of Russian expansion.

  April 1920 = Poles (Pilsudski) and Ukrainians (Petlyura) treaty of alliance - advance into Russia (ten infantry divisions and four cavalry brigades)

  However - Reds despite being engaged in civil war attack back with 21 infantry divisions - nearly took Warsaw however "Miracle on the Vistula" - lead to Treaty of Riga
• Treaty of Rapallo (1922)

  League of Nations formed without Russia or Germany + western hostility towards both

  waived compensation and reopened diplomatic relations.

  mutual goodwill in economic matters - Germany allowed to train their troops in Russia (treaty of Versailles reduced to 100,000)

  Chichenn = soviet deputy Commissar for Foreign Affairs - new constructive approach.
• Treaty of Berlin (1926)

  Reaffirmed Rapallo

  pledged neutrality in event of an attack on each other by a 3rd party.
• 1924 - Zinoviev letter and damaged relation with Britain

  Jan 1924 - Labour government elected with large mandate under Macdonald - vote of no confidence

  Sept 1924 - Daily Mail - Zinoviev letter to socialist parties in UK - fabricated by right wing - caused chaos in British public feared communism

  154 seats gained by Conservative

  158 seats lost by liberal and labour.

  Damaged any form of British and Russia similarity politically.
• Situation in China

  CCP = Chinese Communist Party GMD = Guomindang (nationalist)

  March 1926 = GMD established military dictatorship in Canton, 1927 = supress workers rebellion in Shanghai and then Wuhan (30,000 workers killed that year)
• Why did Stalin Support the GMD - foreign relations before 1929

  Policy = "socialism in one country" = supported GMD over the Communist Party - GMD was a nationalist party of China
• Why are Russia's international relations so erratic and inconsistent - zigzag theory

  Despite moving from diplomatic affairs and permanent revolution/the spread of global communism to socialism in one counrty

  Always best option for Russia in the time context
• Evidence Stalin changed his views on Russian international aims/policiesafter the Leadership Race

  July 1928 Congress = said world capitalism was facing terminal crisis/time was right for an attack on "social fascists"

  pushed Comintern to prepare for a fight to spread revolution - and put loyal "yesmen" imposing strictly discipline on communist parties in France, Germany etc.

  Soviet agents sent abroad to infiltrate

  1934/35 - new hard line policy enforced in Comintern - support popular fronts in Western Europe
• Relations between Russia and Germany 1929-32

  Treaty of Rapallo, Treaty of Berlin

  most intensive period of military collaboration - soviet benefitted from German technical expertise - modernisation of industry and armaments production - made agreements to acquire modern weapons.

  Military Co-operation - vastness of Russian territory = Germans could discreetly carry out miltary developments despite the Treaty of Versialles e.g. Junkers aircraft factory at Fili (near Moscow), training school for German Pilots Lipetsk (Ukraine)
• Why did co-operation with Germany decline in 1933-34

  Hitler became chancellor in 1933, then Fuhrer in 1934 - expansion of Fascism = opposite to Stalin's ideology

  Also rise of fascism in both Italy and Japan - geographically Russia at threat ideologically between Europe and Asia
• What changes occurred in Russian international policy due to the deterioration of the German-Russian Alliance?

  Established diplomatic relations with US in 1933 - American embassy opened in Moscow - allowed US diplomats to operate within USSR (previously had been "Riga Watchers" which reported from Latvia)

  Important in regards to Russia joined the League of Nations in 1934
• What was Stalins change in policy in order to stand up against the rising threat of fascism?

  Stalin's official policy was to support collective security by supporting broad-based "popular fronts" in other countries.

  Popular Front = calls for "anti-fascist solidarity" after rise of fascism - setting aside divisions/rivalries to provide united actions by liberal and left - popular front gov formed in France in May 1935 - Popular fronts become official policy of Comintern in 1935.
• Second Comintern Congress - 1920

  established the conditions for Communist Parties admission to the Communist international set + relationship of the national organisations to the international directing centre

  argument over trade unions - left wing communists argued unions were by-product of capitalism - therefore explicitly revolutionary dual unions should be established, however Lenin sharply disagreed - attempt to work from within to move them to revolutionary course
• Third Comintern Congress 1921

  tactics of communist international during the revolution - internal structure of Communist parties, method of action and essence of that action also appeal of the Italian socialist Party and Communist International, and the K.A.P.D (communist workers party of Germany)
• What was Appeasement and why was this tactic adopted by Britain and France?

  diplomatic strategy to avoid confrontation - involves making concessions to aggressive foreign power to avoid war
• What is a key example of Appeasement concerning the Munich Agreement of 1938?

  Munich conference - Chamberlain (UK), Daladier (France), Hitler (Germany) and Mussolini (Italy)

  Involved the surrender of Sudeten region in Czechoslovakia to Nazi Germany in order to appease Hitler to not want to invade any other border such as Poland.
• Why did the Munich Conference convince Stalin to change his alliances?

  Despite Stalin being allied with Britain and France after Germanys descent into fascism when Hitler became Chancellor - he isn't invited to the Munich Conference

  Humiliating and indicates where Russia stands in European powers eyes.
• What was the agreement made between Russia and France in 1935 and how does this link to Czech?

  Litvinov = Foreign Minister of Russia

  Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance - although reluctant to keep German rearmament (Hitler justified demilitarisation of the Rhineland due to the pact) - lead to large-scale shift in Soviet policy in 7th Congress of Comintern (pro-revisionist stance on Treaty of Versailles to more western-orientated policy)

  lead to Czechoslovak-Soviet Treaty of Alliance of May 1935 - defend Czechoslovakia in the case of German invasion with France
• What was the Nazi-Soviet Pact (Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact)- 1939

  arrangement included a 10-year non-aggression pact

  ❖ Germany and the USSR agreed not to go to war, even though both sides knew that war between them was inevitable.

  ❖ They secretly agreed to partition Polish territory between them.

  Based on two assumptions:

  • Stalin overestimated strength of French Army - surrendered 1940
  • He wrongly assumed he could trust Hilter as an Ally (kept strictly to pacts rules)
• Who by and When was Litvinov replaced as Foreign Minister and what did this mean for foreign policy

  replaced by Molotov in May 1939 - shift in foreign policy - more aligned with Germany = aggressive, on the offensive etc

  This lead to both Soviet-Nazi Pact and Invasion of Poland by Hitler in Sep 1939 and later Soviet armies - German-Soviet border agreed upon by Ribbentrop and Molotov

  1940 = soviet occupation of Baltic States
• Operation Barbarossa 1941 and its consequence

  Hitler decided to break the Pact and German invasion of USSR -
• June 1941 - Operation of Barbarossa

  Main goal was capturing territory up to a line between Arkhangelsk and Astrakhan (the A-A line)