The Yalta Conference, sometimes called the Crimea Conference and codenamed the Argonaut Conference, was the wartime meeting from 4 February 1945 to 11 February 1945 between the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union—President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Premier of the Soviet Union Joseph Stalin, respectively. A code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word Events 211 - Roman Emperor Septimius Severus dies leaving the Roman Empire in the hands of his two quarrelsome sons Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Events 660 BC - Traditional founding date of Japan by Emperor Jimmu. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the political leader of the United Kingdom Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 Premier of the Soviet Union is the commonly used English term for the offices of Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR (Председатель Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party
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The conference
On February 4th to 11 February 1945 the Big Three (Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin) convened near Yalta, on the Crimean Peninsula. Events 211 - Roman Emperor Septimius Severus dies leaving the Roman Empire in the hands of his two quarrelsome sons Events 660 BC - Traditional founding date of Japan by Emperor Jimmu. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The Allied Leaders of World War II consists of the important political and military figures that fought or supported the Allies during World War II. Yalta (Ялта Yalta is a city in Crimea, southern Ukraine, on the north coast of the Black Sea. Crimea (kraɪˈmiːə or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Крим Автономна Республіка Крим Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Крым It was the second of three wartime conferences among the major Allied Power leaders. It had been preceded by the Tehran Conference in 1943, and it was followed by the Potsdam Conference, which Harry S Truman attended in place of the late Roosevelt, and Clement Attlee attended in place of Churchill, due to general election loss, later in 1945. The Tehran Conference ( Codenamed EUREKA) was the meeting of Joseph Stalin, Franklin D The Potsdam Conference was held at Cecilienhof, the home of Crown Prince Wilhelm Hohenzollern, in Potsdam, Germany, from July 16,
Premier Stalin, insisting his doctors opposed any long trips, opposed Roosevelt's suggestion to meet on the Mediterranean. [1] He offered, instead, to meet at the Black Sea resort of Yalta, in the Crimea. The Black Sea is an inland Sea bounded by southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Anatolian peninsula ( Turkey Each leader had an agenda for the Yalta Conference: Roosevelt asked for Soviet support in the U. S. Pacific War against Japan, specifically invading Japan; Churchill pressed for free elections and democratic governments in Eastern Europe (specifically Poland); and Stalin demanded a Soviet sphere of political influence in Eastern Europe, as essential to the USSR's national security. The Pacific War was the part of World War II —and preceding conflicts—that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands and in East Asia, between For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. Eastern Europe is a general term that refers to the Geopolitical region encompassing the easternmost part of the European continent. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia.
Moreover, all three leaders were trying to establish an agenda for governing post-war Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. In 1943 William Christian Bullitt, Jr.'s thesis prophesied the "flow of the Red amoeba into Europe". William Christian Bullitt Jr ( January 25, 1891, Philadelphia &mdash February 15, 1967, Neuilly-sur-Seine) was an American The Front Line at the end of December 1943 remained in Russia, but by August 1944 Soviet forces were inside Poland and parts of Romania in their relentless drive West. [2] By the time of the Conference, Marshal Georgy Zhukov was forty miles from Berlin. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Stalin's position at the conference was one which he felt was so strong that he could dictate terms. Moreover, Roosevelt had hoped for Stalin's commitment to participate in the United Nations. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security
Regarding the first item of the Soviet agenda for Eastern Europe, Poland immediately arose; Stalin stated the Soviet case:
| “ | For the Russian people, the question of Poland is not only a question of honor but also a question of security. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Throughout history, Poland has been the corridor through which the enemy has passed into Russia. Twice in the last thirty years our enemies, the Germans, have passed through this corridor. It is in Russia’s interest that Poland should be strong and powerful, in a position to shut the door of this corridor by her own force…It is necessary that Poland should be free, independent in power. Therefore, it is not only a question of honor but of life and death for the Soviet state. | ” |
Accordingly, Stalin stipulated some of his Polish demands were not negotiable: the Russians would keep the territory they had already annexed in eastern Poland, and Poland was to be compensated for that by extending its Western borders at the expense of Germany. Stalin promised free elections in Poland despite the recently-installed Communist puppet government. However the Western Powers soon saw that Stalin would not honour his free elections promise. The elections, held in January 1947 resulted in Poland's official transformation to a socialist state by 1949; they were considered rigged to favour pro-Soviet political parties. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution
Roosevelt wanted the USSR to enter the Pacific War with the Allies. The Pacific War was the part of World War II —and preceding conflicts—that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands and in East Asia, between The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. One Soviet precondition for a declaration of war against Japan was a USA–USSR recognition of Mongolian independence from the then Nationalist China. The agreement was effected without diplomatic negotiations with China. Some six months after the Yalta Conference, the USSR attacked Japanese forces before a formal declaration of war against Japan and the Red Army seized northern parts of the Japanese archipelago. Later this was disputed between Russia and Japan; Russia did not sign the San Francisco Peace Treaty with Japan and no separate peace treaty had been signed between Russia and Japan as of 2008. Attending countries Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Chile
Roosevelt met Stalin's price hoping the USSR could be dealt with via the United Nations. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security Later, many Americans considered the agreements of the Yalta Conference were a 'sellout', encouraging Soviet expansion of influence to Japan and Asia, and because Stalin eventually violated the agreements in forming the Soviet bloc. During the Cold War, the term Communist Bloc (or Soviet Bloc) was used to refer to the Soviet Union and countries it either controlled or that were Furthermore the Soviets had agreed to join the United Nations, given the secret understanding of a voting formula with a veto power for permanent members of the Security Council, thus ensuring that each country could block unwanted decisions. It is possible that Roosevelt's failing health (Yalta was his last major conference before dying of cerebral hemorrhage) was partially to blame for such poor judgment. A cerebral hemorrhage (or intracerebral hemorrhage, ICH) is a subtype of Intracranial hemorrhage that occurs within the Brain tissue itself At the time the Red Army had occupied and held much of Eastern Europe with military three times greater than Allied forces in the West.
The Big Three ratified previous agreements about the post-war occupation zones for Germany: three zones of occupation, one for each of the three principal Allies: The Soviet Union, Great Britain, and the U. S. A. (France later received one also, when the USA and the UK ceded parts of their zones). Berlin itself, although in the Russian zone would also be divided into three sectors (and eventually became a Cold War symbol because of the division's realization via the Berlin Wall, built and manned by the Soviet-backed East German government). Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the The Berlin Wall (Berliner Mauer was a physical barrier separating West Berlin from the German Democratic Republic (GDR ( East Germany) including
Also, the Big Three agreed that all original governments would be restored to the invaded countries (with the exception of the French government which was regarded as collaborationist in Romania and Bulgaria the Soviets had already liquidated most of the governments| the Polish government-in-exile were excluded by Stalin) and that all civilians would be repatriated. The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October Democracies would be established and all countries would hold free elections and European order restored per this statement:
| “ | The establishment of order in Europe, and the rebuilding of national economic life, must be achieved by processes which will enable the liberated peoples to destroy the last vestiges of Nazism and fascism and to create democratic institutions of their own choice. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German Fascism is a totalitarian nationalist and corporatist ideology | ” |
major points
Key points of the meeting are as follows:
- There was an agreement that the priority would be the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. Unconditional surrender is a surrender without conditions except for those provided by International law. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers After the war Germany would be split into three occupied zones.
- Stalin agreed that France might have a fourth occupation zone in Germany and Austria but it would have to be formed out of the American and British zones. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.
- Germany would undergo demilitarization and denazification. Demilitarisation or demilitarization is the reduction of a nation's army weapons or military vehicles to an agreed minimum Denazification (Entnazifizierung was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society culture press economy judiciary and politics of any
- German reparations were partly to be in the form of forced labor of German soldiers, to be used to repair damage Germany inflicted on its victims. War reparations refer to the monetary compensation intended to cover damage or injury during a war Unfree labour is a generic or collective term for those work relations especially in modern or early modern history in which people are employed against their will (see also Eisenhower and German POWs)
- Creation of a reparation council which would be located in Russia. Canadian Novelist James Bacque has alleged that US General Dwight '''Eisenhower''' oversaw the deaths by starvation or exposure of one million German
- The status of Poland was discussed. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland It was agreed to reorganize the communist Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland that had been set up by the Red Army.
- The Polish eastern border would follow the Curzon Line, and Poland would receive territorial compensation in the west from Germany. The Curzon Line was a Demarcation line proposed in 1920 by the British Foreign Secretary George Nathaniel Curzon 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston
- Citizens of the Soviet Union and of Yugoslavia were to be handed over to their respective countries, regardless of their consent. See also Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian
- Roosevelt obtained a commitment by Stalin to participate in the United Nations. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security
- Stalin requested that all of the 16 Soviet Socialist Republics would be granted United Nations membership, this was taken into consideration but 14 republics were denied. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security
- Stalin agreed to enter the fight against the Empire of Japan within 90 days after the defeat of Germany. The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku
- A "Committee on Dismemberment of Germany" was to be set up. The purpose was to decide whether Germany was to be divided into several nations, some examples of partition plans are shown below:
 The eventual partition of Germany into Allied Occupation Zones: British zone French zone (two exclaves) American zone Soviet zone, later the DDR Allied-administered Austria |
 Partition plan from Winston Churchill: North German state South German state, including modern Austria and Hungary West German state |
 Partition plan from Franklin D. Roosevelt: Hanover Prussia Hesse Saxony Bavaria International zone (two exclaves) Allied-administered Austria |
 Morgenthau Plan: North German state South German state International zone Territory lost from Germany (Saarland to France, Upper Silesia to Poland, East Prussia partitioned between Poland and the USSR) |
See also
Bibliography and references
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4. Persico, Joseph E. Roosevelt’s Secret War. New York: Random House, 2001.
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External links
- Foreign relations of the United States. Conferences at Malta and Yalta, 1945
- Protocol of proceedings of Crimea Conference
- MilitaryHistoryOnline Yalta Conference
- How good was the Good War?
- The Division of Europe Online Documents Collection
- Special German series 2. The Committee on Dismemberment of Germany Allied discussions on the dismemberment of Germany into separate states, March 29, 1945. The committee was ordained at Yalta.
- Yalta casts its shadow 60 years on, BBC, February 7, 2005
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