Figure 1.--

The Soviet Union is the only World War II country which occupied other countries as both a German and Anglo-American ally. Soviet policies were so brutal in the Baltics an Romania that these countries became German allies (1940-41). At the onset of Barbarossa, peopl in the Baltics and the Western Ukraine even saw the Germans as liberators. Soviet occupation policies were very consistent. The goal was to annex some areas, deport selected groups, supress democratic elements, and install compliant puppet regimes. Depending on one's ideological point of view, the Soviet advance might be considered as liberation or simoly a different occupation. The lateer seems a better description, because unlike the situation in Western Europe, the people of Eastern Europe were not given a real democratic choice about the nature of their new government. Stalin used the power of the Red Army and MKVD to impose Communist police states on the people of Eastern Europe. The policy when they reach Germany was to exact substantial reparations. There was some restraint on the part of the Soviets in the aftermath of World War II, but as the Cold War developed, this contraint disappeared and hard-line Stalinist policies were introduced throughout Easttern Europe.

NAZI Ally

The Soviet Union is the only World War II country which occupied other countries as both a German and Anglo-American ally. Soviet policies were so brutal in the Baltics an Romania that these countries became German allies (1940-41). Although it is the NAZI aggressions that are most commonly addressed in World War II histories, the Soviet Union compiled nearly as long a list of aggressions as the NAZIs. Operating within secret protocols to the Non-agression Pact, Hitler and Stalin were in fact close partners in the waging of aggressive war. The Great Patriotic War fought against the NAZIs after the 1941 German invsion came to be an icon in Soviet history. Left unsaid was the fact that Hitler and Stalin were partners in the virtul partition of Europe. After Poland, the first target was Finland, but Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Romania were also targets. The Soviet invasion of Finland had significant repercussions. The Allies for a time considered actively aidinging Finland, but the Germans offensives in the West soon made that impossible. The poor performance of the Red Army in Finland was a factor in Hitler's decission to attack the Soviet Union before Britain had been defeated.

NAZI Opponent

At the onset of Barbarossa, peopl in the Baltics and the Western Ukraine even saw the Germans as liberators. Soviet occupation policies were very consistent. The goal was to annex some areas, deport selected groups, supress democratic elements, and install compliant puppet regimes. Depending on one's ideological point of view, the Soviet advance might be considered as liberation or simply a different occupation. The lateer seems a better description, because unlike the situation in Western Europe, the people of Eastern Europe were not given a real democratic choice about the nature of their new government. Stalin used the power of the Red Army and MKVD to impose Communist police states on the people of Eastern Europe. The policy when they reach Germany was to exact substantial reparations. There was some restraint on the part of the Soviets in the aftermath of World War II, but as the Cold War developed, this contraint disappeared and hard-line Stalinist policies were introduced throughout Easttern Europe.

Created: 7:23 PM 4/18/2011
Last updated: 7:23 PM 4/18/2011