Soviet Foreign Policy - Pt. 1

Author: Linda DeLaine
Website: RL Online
Department:
Page: 1 ( 5) pages

Summary: First in a series of articles which deal with Soviet foreign policy. In Part One, we make our way through a series of treaties, pacts and secret alliances during the years leading up to WWII and Germany's attack on Russia.

From 1922 forward, Soviet foreign policy had two primary goals. Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin

- Recovery of lands lost in 1918-1921. Namely Finland, the Baltic states, Eastern Poland and northeastern Romania (modern Moldova) known as Bessarabia. The idea was to to use these areas as a literal buffer against Western invasion.

- Abolishment of states and replacing them with a socialist commonwealth which would be governed by Soviet Russia. The Soviets sought to regain and control all areas of Eastern Europe which had once been part of the Russian Empire.

The tool used in the Soviet attempt to gain control over communized lands was the Comintern (1919). During this time, there was a bitter battle between socialists and communists for workers' loyalty in Europe. Socialists held to democratic values while communists believed in revolution. The Comintern, founded by Lenin and others, demanded a world wide workers' revolution. The hoped for solidarity of the common man would be controlled by Moscow.

The second congress, or meeting, of the Comintern was held in July 1920. It called for the Soviets to seize control of Warsaw, making Poland a part of the international union of Soviet states. The following month, the Comintern produced The Twenty-One Conditions. The program was intended to protect and strengthen Soviet Russia and, in effect, declared war on any democratic/capitalist society. This plan demanded that all communists:

drive socialists out of labor unions
actively assist any rebellions against imperial control, where ever it might be found
create a strong presence in the factories, towns and military forces of any capitalist nation
conduct purges, doing away with all suspected traitors and spies
advocate one, international state, the Soviet Union

During the period between the World Wars (1921-1933), the Twenty-One Conditions failed to live up to expectations. Soviet Russia's single closest diplomatic relationship was with capitalist Germany. The two nations had compatible goals. Germany wanted revenge against the rest of Europe and its allies for the devastation and territorial losses of WWI (see Treaty of Versailles). Soviet Russia sought revolution among all workers and their solidarity under the umbrella of the Soviet state.

Next Page > Germany and the Soviets > Page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Soviet Foreign Policy - Pt. 1

Sample Modal Window

This is just a sample…