Transcript Molotov- Ribbentrop Pact

Molotov- Ribbentrop Pact
23rd August 1939
 Also known as the Nazi-Soviet Pact.
 Also known as the Russo-German Nonaggression Pact
 Both the Soviets and the Germans agreed not to fight each other
- not to join any alliances against each
other
- not to support anyone who attacked the
other.
There were, however, SECRET
terms included in the pact!
 Eastern Europe was divided into
“spheres of influence” ie areas where
either the Soviet Union or Germany
would expect to dominate countries
they would not actually take over as
such.
 Poland was to be divided up in any
future war, with Germany taking the
west including, of course, the hated
Polish Corridor, with the USSR taking
the east.
Friends or Enemies?
Why did the Nazis agree to the
Pact?
 Hitler wanted to attack Poland without
worrying about Soviet intervention.
 The German armed forces were still
not strong enough to tackle the
loathed Russians in battle. Hitler was
keen to delay an anti-Soviet campaign
for the time being.
 Without Soviet support to help the
British and French effort, Hitler was
sure that they would not keep their
promise to defend Poland.
Why did the Soviets agree to the
Pact?
 Britain, France and the Soviet Union had been in
negotiations over the summer of 1939, but they had
made little progress, partly because most British
politicians feared communism and distrusted Stalin.
Britain also believed that the Soviet army was divided
and weak because of internal political rivalry and
plotting. Stalin, therefore, believed that the Soviet
Union would have to protect itself against the Nazis, as
Britain and France would do nothing to help them.
 Russia had had to give up part of Poland after World
War One. Here was a way of getting it back without any
need to fight for it!
 The Soviet military simply weren’t ready to fight.
Impact and Consequences of the
Pact.
 Britain and France were stunned, as was
much of the world, as the hatred between
the Soviets and the Nazis was well-known.
 Britain agreed a formal military alliance
with Poland on 25th August, 1939, even
though it would be difficult to support
Poland effectively without Soviet help.
 Hitler ordered invasion of Poland to be
ready for September 1st, as the Poles had
refused to negotiate any further over
Danzig, so a “Munich – style” solution was
not going to take place. War seemed
inevitable.