The Importance of the Nazi–Soviet Pact | History for GCSE/IGCSE - Year 11 PDF Download

The USSR's Aims for the Nazi-Soviet Pact

• The Nazi-Soviet Pact, also known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, was a non-aggression treaty signed between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
• It was signed on August 23, 1939, just before the outbreak of World War II, and it shocked the world due to the unexpected alliance between two ideological foes.
• One of the main aims of the pact for the USSR was to secure its western borders and buy time to prepare for a potential conflict.
• By signing the pact, the Soviet Union aimed to avoid a two-front war, which had severely weakened it during World War I.
• The agreement included a secret protocol that divided Eastern Europe into spheres of influence between Germany and the Soviet Union.
• This pact allowed the Soviet Union to expand its influence and territory westward, gaining control over parts of Poland, the Baltic states, and Finland.
• Furthermore, the pact provided the USSR with valuable resources and technology from Germany, enhancing its industrial and military capabilities.
• However, the pact was a temporary arrangement, as Hitler eventually broke the agreement by invading the Soviet Union in June 1941, leading to the Eastern Front of World War II.

Why Did Stalin Sign the Pact?

Germany's Aims for the Nazi-Soviet Pact

Hitler approached Stalin on 20th August to propose the pact, which was unexpected due to several reasons:

• The USSR had a significant Jewish population.
  • There was a widespread, albeit inaccurate, belief that numerous Soviet communists were Jewish.
• Hitler viewed the Slavs, Eastern European inhabitants, as subhuman.
• Expansion into Soviet territory was crucial to fulfill Hitler's foreign policy goal of Lebensraum.

Why Hitler Signed the Pact?

Terms of the Nazi-Soviet Pact

Other Alliances - The Pact of Steel

In 1939, Germany and Italy formed a formal alliance known as the Pact of Steel.

• The official name of this alliance is the Pact of Friendship and Alliance.
• Prior to this, in 1936, the two nations had signed a friendship treaty called the Rome-Berlin Axis.

How Did Other Alliances Influence the Nazi-Soviet Pact?

• Stalin grew increasingly concerned about the rise of Fascism.
  • Japan was a long-standing adversary of Russia.
    • Japan had defeated Russia in the 1904 war.
    • Japanese-controlled Manchuria shared a border with the USSR.
  • The Nazi-Soviet Pact provided Stalin with temporary protection from Japan and Germany.
• However, the pact was destined to fail.
  • The Anti-Comintern Pact demonstrated Hitler's opposition to Communism.
  • In 1941, Hitler violated the Nazi-Soviet Pact by invading Russia in Operation Barbarossa.