An unknown history. The 1939 nonaggression pact between Stalin and Hitler was signed because France and England didn´t want to sign it before with Russia .

     One of the most shocking episodes leading up to the Second World War was the sign of nonaggression pact between Russia and Germany on August 23, 1939, just days before Germany invaded Russia and started WWII.

    This episode was surprising for many reasons, propaganda both, Russia and Germany, were furiously attacking the opposite. Further this pact was quoted by the Western media as an example of "perfidy" of Stalin.

Sign of nonaggression pact

    In the book of Alexander Dallin "Russia at War" explained the meeting between the military missions of France and England and Russia in Moscow in August 1939. These military missions arrived with secondary characters and without credentials to make decisions, not only that, but despite being announced their visit more than three weeks in advance, slowly they traveled to Russia for six days by boat to St. Petersburg where they arrived on August 12.

     When the Russians proposed to provide 120 infantry divisions against the aggressor along with 16 cavalry divisions, 5,000 guns, from 9 to 10,000 tanks and from 5000 to 5500 aircraft, General Heywood head of the British mission spoke about five infantry divisions and mechanized division. The difference was so ridiculous that obviously was not taken seriously.

      The Russians proposed a system of alliances if "the aggressors" (obviously Germany) attacked France or England, if attacked Poland or Romania or attacking the Soviet Union from Finland and the Baltic countries. French and English, not only they did not accept the Russian proposals, but also don´t made some counterproposals.

     Last but not least the Poles refused any kind of cooperation with the Russians. In a political suicide, denying even the passage of Russian troops to fight against the Germans, as they did when Russia try to help Czechoslovakia when she was invaded by the Germans - another historical fact largely unknown -.The impression left with the Russians is that France and England were less interested in helping Poland that in Russia fighted alone in a war with Germany.    All this within two weeks of the start of WWII.

   Interestingly Stalin's summary on the international situation in his report to the 18th Congress of the Communist Party of March 10, 1939 :

   "... Most of the non-aggressive states, and first of all, England and France have abandoned the theory of collective security, and have changed rather than a policy of" non-intervention "by a policy of" neutrality ".... there is a clear desire to allow their dirty and criminal aggressors work- allow Japan to go to war with China, or better still, with the Soviet Union ... or allow Germany to go to war with the Soviet Union .. and until all the belligerents are completely exhausted, non-aggressive powers went forward- of course "in the interests of peace" - with their own proposals and dictate its terms to the powers that have warred with each other. A nice and cheap way of doing things!

   When we think of WWII and we see the Normandy landing did not take place until mid-1944 when already the Russians were almost in Poland,  after fighting virtually alone against the Germans for more of three  years, and ask uselessly, USA and England to the opening of the second front,and these were waiting they will bleed,  these words are prophetic. Stalin was a murderer but obviously was not stupid.

 Is it any wonder that with this attitude of France and England Stalin signed the nonaggression pact with Germany ? 

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