Foreign policy of the USSR creation of the Warsaw Pact organization. What you need to know about the Warsaw Pact Organization

military-political organization. Created on May 14, 1955 by representatives of 8 European socialist states that signed the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance. The creation of a military bloc cemented the geopolitical split in Europe and the confrontation with NATO. On July 1, 1991, a protocol on the cessation of the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs was signed in Prague.

Great definition

Incomplete definition ↓

WARSAW TREATY ORGANIZATION (WATS)

created based on Warsaw Pact 1955 on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance, which was signed on May 14 in Warsaw by Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR, Czechoslovakia and Albania (since 1962, Albania did not participate in the work of the Organization created on the basis of the treaty, but left the Organization in September 1968). The conclusion of the treaty was caused by the aggressive activities of the NATO bloc to neutralize it, ensure the security of member states and maintain peace in Europe.

Participants in the ATS stated that the treaty was open for accession by other states, regardless of their social and political system. The participating states of the Warsaw Wars of Internal Affairs pledged to refrain from the threat or use of force, and in the event of an armed attack on any of them, to provide immediate assistance to the victim of aggression by all necessary means, including the use of armed force. Members of the OVD, in accordance with its terms and the UN Charter, pledged to act in a spirit of friendship and cooperation to strengthen economic and cultural ties, following the principles of mutual respect for independence, sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of each other and other states. Great definition

Incomplete definition ↓

Educational background

After World War II, the two great powers, the USSR and the USA, turned out to be the strongest militarily and economically and gained the greatest influence in the world. As the mortal threat of fascism, which united the world, disappeared, the initial contradictions of the anti-Hitler alliance and the geopolitical interests of the powers led to the collapse of the coalition and to a new split into hostile blocs. The incompleteness and lack of formalization of the cardinal shifts in the balance of power that occurred after the war, the instability of their new balance pushed the great powers to win him over to their side.

The USA and the USSR adopted the theory of a bipolar world and took the path of tough confrontation. An influential American journalist then called the conflicts between these countries a “cold war.” The press picked up this phrase, and it became a designation for the entire period of international politics until the end of the 80s. The Cold War was characterized by two important features: the arms race and the division of the world and Europe.

Warsaw Pact 1955 on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance, signed by Albania (1968 - withdrawn), Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR and Czechoslovakia on May 14, 1955 at the Warsaw Meeting of European States to Ensure Peace and Security in Europe - after 6 years after the formation of NATO. However, cooperation between the countries of the socialist camp existed long before this: after the Second World War in the countries of Eastern Europe governments led by communists came to power, partly due to the fact that after the war Soviet troops remained in Eastern Europe, creating a psychological background. Before the formation of the Department of Internal Affairs, relations between the states of the socialist system were built on the basis of treaties of friendship and cooperation. In 1949, the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was created (an intergovernmental economic organization was created in order to promote the development of the CMEA member countries), which initially included the USSR, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia, and then a number of other countries.

Due to some imbalances in the USSR's relations with its allies in Eastern Europe after March 1953, signs of mass discontent appeared in some countries of the socialist camp. There were strikes and demonstrations in some cities of Czechoslovakia, and the situation in Hungary worsened. The most serious unrest occurred in June 1953 in the GDR, where strikes and demonstrations caused by deteriorating living standards brought the country to the brink of a general strike. The Soviet government was forced to introduce tanks into the GDR, which, with the help of the police, suppressed the protests of the workers. After the death of I.V. Stalin, the new Soviet leadership undertook a number of trips abroad for the purpose of negotiations and personal acquaintance with social leaders. countries As a result of these trips, the Warsaw Pact organization was formed in 1955, which included almost all the countries of Eastern Europe, except Yugoslavia, which traditionally adhered to a policy of non-alignment. The conclusion of the Warsaw Pact was caused by the threat to peace in Europe created by the ratification by Western states of the Paris Agreements of 1954, which provided for the formation of the Western European Union, the remilitarization of West Germany and its inclusion in NATO.

Essence and purposes of the Treaty

At the meeting on May 11-14, 1955, a decision was also made to create a Unified Command of the armed forces of the states parties to the Treaty. This decision provided that general issues related to strengthening defense capabilities and the United Nations armed forces(OVS) of the States Parties to the Treaty are subject to consideration by the Political Consultative Committee, which will apply the appropriate decisions. The treaty consisted of preamble 11 and articles. In accordance with its terms and the UN Charter, the states parties to the Warsaw Pact pledged to refrain from international relations from the threat or use of force, and in the event of an armed attack on any of them, to provide the attacked states with immediate assistance by all means deemed necessary, including the use of armed forces. Members of the Warsaw Pact have pledged to act in a spirit of friendship and cooperation in order to further development and strengthening economic and cultural ties among themselves, following the principles of mutual respect for independence, sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of each other and other states. The Warsaw Pact is valid for 20 years, with an automatic extension of 10 years for those states that do not submit a statement of denunciation of the Warsaw Pact to the Polish government one year before the expiration of the term. It is open to the accession of other states, regardless of their social and political system. The Warsaw Pact will lose force if a collective security system is created in Europe and a pan-European treaty is concluded for this purpose.

The Department of Internal Affairs clearly defined its goals:

coordination of foreign policy efforts in the struggle for joint security of the participating states, for the preservation and strengthening of peace and security in Europe and throughout the world;

cooperation of the participating states in the field of defense for the joint defense of their sovereignty and independence, the most effective rebuff to any aggressive attempts of imperialism.

In essence, the Warsaw Pact legitimized the presence of Soviet troops in the member countries, because they had practically no heavy weapons, and the USSR thereby secured its western borders.

Warsaw Pact

Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance between the People's Republic of Albania, the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the Hungarian People's Republic, the German Democratic Republic, the Polish People's Republic, the Romanian People's Republic, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the Czechoslovak Republic.

Contracting parties.

Reaffirming our desire to create a system of collective security in Europe, based on the participation of all European states in it, regardless of their social and state system, which would allow them to unite their efforts in the interests of ensuring peace in Europe, taking into account at the same time the situation that has created in Europe as a result of the ratification of the Paris agreements, providing for the formation of a new military grouping in the form of a “Western European Union” with the participation of a remilitarized West Germany and its inclusion in the North Atlantic bloc, which increases the danger of a new war and creates a threat national security peace-loving states, being convinced that in these conditions the peace-loving states of Europe must take the necessary measures to ensure their security and in the interests of maintaining peace in Europe, guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, in the interests of further strengthening and developing friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance in accordance with the principles of respect for the independence and sovereignty of states, as well as non-interference in their internal affairs, have decided to conclude this Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance and have appointed as their representatives:

President German Democratic Republic - Otto Grotewohl, Prime Minister of the German Democratic Republic, State Council of the Polish People's Republic - Józef Cyrankiewicz, Chairman of the Polish People's Republic, Presidium of the Grand National Assembly of the Romanian People's Republic - Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Romanian People's Republic, Supreme Presidium Council of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics - Nikolai Aleksandrovich Bulganin, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR.

The President of the Czechoslovak Republic is William Shiroky, the Prime Minister of the Czechoslovak Republic, who, having presented their powers, found in due form and in perfect order, have agreed as follows:

The Contracting Parties undertake, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force and to resolve their international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner as not to jeopardize international peace and security.

The Contracting Parties declare their readiness to participate in a spirit of sincere cooperation in all international actions aimed at ensuring international peace and security, and will devote their full energies to the implementation of these goals.

At the same time, the Contracting Parties will strive to take, in agreement with other states that wish to cooperate in this matter, effective measures for a general reduction in armaments and the prohibition of atomic, hydrogen and other types of weapons of mass destruction.

The Contracting Parties will consult with each other on all important international issues affecting their common interests, guided by the interests of strengthening international peace and security.

They will consult each other without delay whenever, in the opinion of any of them, there is a threat of armed attack against one or more States Parties to the Treaty, in the interests of ensuring common defense and maintaining peace and security.

In the event of an armed attack in Europe on one or more States Parties to the Treaty by any State or group of States, each State Party to the Treaty, in the exercise of the right of individual or collective self-defense, in accordance with Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will the State or States subjected to such attack, immediate assistance, individually and by agreement with other States Parties to the Treaty, by all means deemed necessary, including the use of armed force. The States Parties to the Treaty will consult immediately regarding joint measures to be taken to restore and maintain international peace and security.

Actions taken pursuant to this article will be reported to the Security Council in accordance with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations. These measures will cease as soon as the Security Council has taken the measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security.

The Contracting Parties agreed to the creation of a Unified Command of their armed forces, which will be allocated by agreement between the Parties to the jurisdiction of this Command, operating on the basis of jointly established principles. They will also take other agreed measures necessary to strengthen their defense capabilities in order to protect the peaceful labor of their peoples, guarantee the inviolability of their borders and territories and provide protection from possible aggression.

In order to carry out the consultations provided for by this Treaty between the States Parties to the Treaty and to consider issues arising in connection with the implementation of this Treaty, a Political Consultative Committee shall be created in which each State Party to the Treaty will be represented by a member of the Government or other specially appointed representative.

The Committee may create subsidiary bodies as may be necessary.

The Contracting Parties undertake not to take part in any coalitions or alliances and not to enter into any agreements the purposes of which are contrary to the purposes of this Treaty.

The Contracting Parties declare that their obligations under existing international treaties are not in conflict with the provisions of this Treaty.

The Contracting Parties declare that they will act in a spirit of friendship and cooperation with a view to further developing and strengthening economic and cultural ties between them, following the principles of mutual respect for their independence and sovereignty and non-interference in their internal affairs.

This Treaty is open to accession by other states, regardless of their social and political system, which express their readiness, through participation in this Treaty, to contribute to the unification of efforts of peace-loving states in order to ensure the peace and security of peoples. Such accession will come into force with the consent of the states parties to the Treaty after the document of accession is deposited with the Government of the Polish People's Republic.

This Treaty is subject to ratification, and the instruments of ratification will be deposited with the Government of the Polish People's Republic.

The Treaty will enter into force on the day of deposit of the last instrument of ratification. The Government of the Polish People's Republic will inform the other states party to the Treaty about the deposit of each instrument of ratification.

This Agreement will remain in force for twenty years. For Contracting Parties that, one year before the expiration of this period, do not submit to the Government of the Polish People's Republic a declaration of denunciation of the Treaty, it will remain in force for the next ten years.

In the event that a system of collective security is created in Europe and a Pan-European Treaty on Collective Security is concluded for this purpose, to which the Contracting Parties will steadily strive, this Treaty will lose its force from the date of entry into force of the Pan-European Treaty.

Compiled in Warsaw on the fourteenth of May 1955 in one copy in Russian, Polish, Czech and German languages, and all texts are equally valid. Certified copies of this Agreement will be sent by the Government of the Polish People's Republic to all other parties to the Agreement.

In witness whereof, the Plenipotentiaries have signed this Agreement and affixed seals thereto.

Activities of the Department of Internal Affairs

Of the conflicts between the Warsaw Department (USSR) and NATO (USA), it is worth noting the two most important ones, which almost led the world to the Third World War: the Berlin and Caribbean crises.

The Berlin Crisis of 1959-1962 was caused by the mass exodus of East Germans to West Berlin. To stop these unrest, in just one night, the Berlin Wall was erected around West Berlin. Checkpoints were set up at the border. The construction of the wall caused even more tension, which led to the appearance of crowds near these points, wanting to leave the Soviet sector of Berlin. Soon at the Brandenburg Gate, at the main checkpoints, Soviet and American tanks. The Soviet-American confrontation ended with the withdrawal of Soviet tanks from these borders.

The Cuban Missile Crisis erupted in 1962 and brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. It all started with the United States placing its missile base in Turkey. In response, the USSR secretly stationed its medium-range missiles in Cuba. In the USA, upon learning about this, real panic began. The actions of the USSR were regarded as preparation for war. The conflict was resolved by the withdrawal of Soviet missiles from Cuba, American missiles from Turkey, and the US commitment not to resort to any action against Cuba.

Within the Department of Internal Affairs itself, in addition to the Berlin one, there were other crises caused by the desire of the socialist countries of Eastern Europe for a better life and liberation from Soviet influence: the uprising in Hungary (1956, Operation Whirlwind), suppressed by Soviet tanks and attempts at reform in Czechoslovakia “Prague” spring” (1968, Operation Danube), also suppressed by the introduction of troops from five neighboring socialist states into Czechoslovakia.

The Afghan war of 1979-1989 should also be noted. In 1978, as a result of a military coup in Afghanistan, a government came to power with the goal of building socialism in the country on the model of the USSR. This caused mass discontent in the country and then Afghan President Amin asked the USSR military assistance. A “limited contingent” of Soviet troops was introduced into Afghanistan. Afghan war lasted 10 years and ended in failure. The outbreak of this war caused a wide wave of criticism. The USSR found itself in international isolation, and protests began to grow within the country.

Disintegration of the Department of Internal Affairs

With the beginning of perestroika in the USSR, the entire foreign policy of the country changed. The Soviet Union began to declare its commitment to the principles of collective security and respect for the sovereign right of peoples to choose the path of development. The USSR did not interfere with the peaceful (“velvet”) revolutions of 1989-1990 in Eastern European countries. On November 8, 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and the Brandenburg Gate opened. In 1990, Germany was reunified, although it meant the liquidation of the GDR, a former loyal Soviet ally.

The engine of the collapse of the Soviet military empire was the three states of Central Europe - Poland, Hungary and East Germany. Budapest Protocol 1991 drew a line under the existence of the military organization of the Warsaw Pact. Representatives of Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and Romania left their Moscow residences.

On June 30, 1991, the last meeting of the heads of state and government took place, signing the final document on the dissolution of the Department of Internal Affairs, which had existed for 36 years. From 1991 to 1994, the gradual withdrawal of Soviet troops from Czechoslovakia, Hungary, the GDR and Poland began. Thus, the final point was put in the history of the Warsaw Pact.

In December 1991, the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus (the founding countries of the USSR) announced the termination of Union Treaty 1922 and signed documents establishing the Commonwealth Independent States. The collapse of the USSR marked the end of the Cold War.

Dictionary “What is what in world politics”

Warsaw Pact Organization (WTO)

Was created under the leadership Soviet Union in 1955. The Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance was signed on May 14, 1955 at the Warsaw Meeting of European States to Ensure Peace and Security in Europe by the leaders of Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, Romania, the USSR and Czechoslovakia for a period of 30 years. In 1985

Warsaw Pact

The contract has been extended for another 20 years. According to the Treaty, the parties that signed it pledged to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force, and in the event of an armed attack on any of them, to provide immediate assistance to the attacked states by all means deemed necessary, including the use of armed forces .

The creation of the Department of Internal Affairs was the military-political response of the Soviet Union to the expansion of the NATO bloc to the east. In 1954 the West ratified Paris Agreements 1954, providing for the formation of the Western European Union, carried out the remilitarization of West Germany and the inclusion of Germany in NATO. As a result, with the creation of the Department of Internal Affairs in Europe, a confrontation between two military blocs arose for three decades. The internal task of the Department of Internal Affairs was to maintain power in the countries of Central Europe in the hands of pro-Soviet communist regimes.

The political leadership of the Department of Internal Affairs was carried out by the Political Consultative Committee, which united the heads of state - members of the organization. Military leadership was exercised by the Joint Command of the Armed Forces, which, according to tradition, was headed by the Marshal of the Soviet Union. The first commander was the hero of the Great Patriotic War, Marshal I.S. Konev.

The language of command was Russian. All basic ATS documentation was prepared in Russian.

Within the framework of the Department of Internal Affairs, the Military Council of the United Armed Forces was also created. The presence of the Department of Internal Affairs provided a legal basis for the participation of Soviet troops in the suppression of the anti-communist uprising in Hungary in 1965. In 1968, military contingents of the participating countries of the Department of Internal Affairs took part in the events in Czechoslovakia, suppressing the “Prague Spring”. Also in 1968, participants in the Bucharest meeting of the Department of Internal Affairs, as well as the meeting of the PKK in Sofia, strongly condemned the US armed intervention in Vietnam.

Taking into account the fact that the total military potential of the European countries participating in the Warsaw Warsaw Forces was not comparable with the military potential of the USSR, the essence of the Warsaw Warsaw Warsaw Forces was the nuclear “umbrella” of the USSR over the European socialist countries and the ability of the Soviet Armed Forces to use the territory of the allies. The creation of the Department of Internal Affairs legitimized the deployment of Soviet troops in Central European countries. In the mid-80s. A group of Soviet troops of 380 thousand people was stationed in the GDR, in Poland - 40 thousand, in Czechoslovakia - 80 thousand, in Hungary - about 70 thousand SA servicemen. At the end of the 50s. preparations were being made for the opening of a naval base on the Adriatic Sea (Albania). Within the framework of the Warsaw Warsaw Warsaw, the USSR Ministry of Defense was given the opportunity to control the armed forces of the countries participating in the Warsaw Warsaw Warsaw Forces and to rearm them. The exchange of intelligence information was established. Within the framework of the Warsaw Pact, the troops of the Warsaw Pact countries were constantly rearmed, and officers were retrained as planned. A wide exchange of military experience was launched.

The most important part of the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs was the wide cooperation of intelligence services and various special forces, which constitute the main support of the ruling regimes in the countries participating in the organization.

In line with the USSR's diplomatic efforts to prevent a global nuclear conflict, the Department of Internal Affairs was positioned as a defensive bloc, whose activities were directed against possible aggression from NATO.

Large-scale exercises of joint groupings of troops were regularly held. The last of them, the most massive, took place in 1982 - “Shield-82”.

The Department of Internal Affairs was not without internal contradictions and problems. In 1961, due to political and ideological disagreements between Moscow and Tirana, Albania ceased its participation in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs; in 1968, Albania formalized its withdrawal from the organization. In the 70-80s, Romania periodically demonstrated its special position in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs. From time to time, leaks of military-technical information to NATO member countries were discovered in the activities of the allies.

Within the Department of Internal Affairs, decisions were not made by consensus. The organization was under the complete control of the Soviet leadership, in military terms - General Staff USSR Ministry of Defense. Within the framework of the Warsaw Warfare, a policy of bilateral multi-level complex military-political integration of the socialist countries of Central Europe with the USSR was pursued, establishing strict control over the armies of the countries allied to the Soviet Union. The effectiveness of this policy was demonstrated in 1981, when the armed forces of the Polish People's Republic actually performed police functions, relieving the ML from the need to intervene in the internal affairs of Poland, following the example of 1968 in Czechoslovakia.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the wave of “velvet” revolutions in Central European countries, the Warsaw Pact lost its ideological basis. The leadership of the USSR in the late 80s and early 90s. considered the Department of Internal Affairs a relic of the Cold War and an unnecessary burden. The rapid withdrawal of Soviet troops from Germany began, and then from other ATS countries. The liquidation of the organization turned out to be a formal fact. On July 1, 1991, the parties included in the OVD signed a Protocol on the termination of the Treaty. Countries that were former members of the Internal Affairs Organization took upon themselves the obligation not to declassify the archives of the Internal Affairs Internal Affairs, but did not fulfill all of this obligation.

Suzdaltsev Andrey Ivanovich

NINA EVGENIEVNA BYSTROVA

Candidate of Historical Sciences (Moscow),

senior researcher at the Institute of Russian History of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Warsaw Pact: on the history of creation and collapse

The Warsaw Pact, as you know, was signed on May 14, 1955. It did not last long - just over 36 years, but had a noticeable impact on the post-war reorganization of the world. This article talks about how it was created and what caused its collapse.

From allies to enemies

The path to the new world order that humanity entered in the 21st century turned out to be very difficult. Echo for long years The confrontation can still be heard today. And the lessons of the first post-war decade of the mid-twentieth century. clearly confirm how important it is to build relationships between states so that they remain relationships of partnership and cooperation, based on mutual interests and mutual trust, as they were between allies in anti-Hitler coalition during the Second World War. The lack of such trust and such interests between them in the post-war years, complemented by ideological and political confrontation, became the source of the deepest crisis in relations between the USSR and Western countries. A major war between them was avoided, but the world found itself in the ice of the Cold War for a long time.

Among the most important factors in the growing contradictions between the USSR and Western countries special place was occupied by the situation in Eastern Europe, where, after the elimination of Hitler's rule, a sphere of Soviet control was formed and regimes of people's democracy were established. From these countries, a socialist military-political bloc led by the USSR began to form. In the West, the construction of a secure world order was seen in a single Anglo-American union based on the principles of democracy and a market economy, in the East - in a union of Slavic peoples, based on the “leading and directing role of communist parties” and planned National economy. It was obvious to everyone: if the former allies failed to agree on further cooperation, these worlds would confront each other.

The formation of opposing military-political blocs was led to by the disengagement of former allies both on geopolitical and economic issues, covered by an ideological flair, and on fundamental issues of reorganization of the post-war world. The manifesto of the Cold War is considered to be Winston Churchill's speech in Fulton in March 1946. Although Churchill accused the Soviet Union of expansionism and the seizure of all of Eastern Europe, declaring an Iron Curtain that had descended from Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, the main thing in his speech there was still a conclusion about the need for a close political and military alliance between the United States and British Empire. True, the idea of confrontation between the two camps was certainly present in Churchill’s speech. But the speech itself was more of a declaration of “cold peace”, but not the beginning of the Cold War.

Nevertheless, both the East and the West sought to expand the sphere of their maximum influence. And the escalation of tension in regional areas, the growth of mutual distrust and suspicion accelerated the transition of their relations from allied to hostile to much to a greater extent than Churchill's Fulton speech. The prerequisite for the creation of opposing military-political blocs was the Marshall Plan (1947),

which provided for the economic recovery of Europe with American assistance and under US control.

The Soviet Union, of course, was interested in receiving American loans for post-war reconstruction, but not at the cost of giving up its sphere of influence in the zone of “people's democracy.” An economic aid program for Europe could destroy the entire system of Soviet control over the countries of Eastern Europe. And in fact, the plan was presented in such a way that the participation of the USSR and Eastern European countries in it looked very problematic. This is confirmed by the admission made by Mr. Hoffman, the administrator of the Marshall Plan, that “without this plan most of Europe would have been under the domination of the Kremlin” and “that the plan stopped the Kremlin’s advance towards the Atlantic Ocean” 1.

Stalin believed that the real goal of the Marshall Plan was to strengthen the Western bloc and isolate the Soviet Union. Therefore, the USSR not only rejected the plan, but also did not allow it to be extended to Eastern European countries. A “reliable” obstacle to this was the formation in September 1947 in Szklarska Poreba (Poland) of the Cominform - Information Bureau of Communist Parties, which “directed” internal socio-political processes in the countries of Eastern Europe in the direction desired by the Soviet leaders. And the core of the formation of the Soviet bloc was the formation of a system of bilateral political, military, economic, cultural and ideological ties between the countries of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, which became their bloc center. By 1949, 35 interstate treaties on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance had already been concluded between the USSR and Eastern European countries, which legally established this bloc.

With the creation of the Western Alliance, concluded in March 1948 in Brussels, the economic division of Europe was deepened and the first military bloc in post-war history was seen as the embryo of a broader military-political organization of the West. That same year, the first open confrontation between the two systems took place - an attempt to blockade West Berlin. Then N.S. Khrushchev will call it Stalin’s desire to “probe the capitalist world with a bayonet.” However, the blockade made the Soviet leader convinced that by such means he could put pressure on Western countries impossible. It only accelerated the creation of NATO.

The West’s desire to “disengage itself” from the Soviet Union was also strengthened by the first split in the socialist camp—the Soviet-Yugoslav conflict. Stalin regarded the position of Joseph Broz Tito and his associates, dissatisfied with Moscow’s efforts to achieve the unconditional subordination of the Eastern European countries, regardless of their fundamental national interests, as hostile and achieved exclusion Communist Party Yugoslavia from the Information Bureau, and Yugoslavia itself was “excommunicated” from the socialist camp. He even accused Tito of disrupting the Soviet five-year plan, which was focused on supplies including from his country. The communist leaders of the states of Eastern Europe, becoming unwitting accomplices in the anti-Yugoslav campaign, contributed to the tightening of Soviet control over their own countries. They did not limit themselves to purges of “unreliable elements”, but took serious repressive measures. Death sentences were imposed on "Tito's agents" by Laszlo Rajk in Hungary, Rudolf Slansky in Czechoslovakia, Koça Dzodze in Albania, and Traicho Kostov in Bulgaria. Thus, the Soviet-Yugoslav conflict became not only an internal matter of the Soviet bloc, but also an element of the confrontation between East and West.

And yet, by the end of the 1940s. last century, the Soviet leadership managed to solve its military-political problem by creating a buffer zone of external security, and at the same time - a political-ideological one, by exporting socialist revolution into Eastern Europe, expanding the borders of the communist bloc. Thus, the Soviet system, replicated in the countries of Eastern Europe, laid in those

The post-war years were the preconditions for its future crises and ultimately the collapse of the entire communist system.

Block logic

By 1949, the military bloc logic had triumphed. The West created a military-political North Atlantic Alliance. The Eastern bloc, not having such a developed economic, political and military basis to create its own military-political union, organized a closed economic system - the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance. And in May 1955, the bloc confrontation received its formal end - Germany joined NATO, the formalization of the North Atlantic Alliance was completed and the so-called Eastern NATO - the Warsaw Pact Organization - was created.

NATO and the Warsaw Warsaw have become unique phenomena in the field of international relations. Moreover, if NATO still retains its key role in solving military problems international security, then the history of the ATS is already over.

Creation of the Warsaw Pact organization

Although, it must be admitted, the history of its origins, attempts at reform and collapse is still practically not studied. There is no answer to the obvious question: why was the military-political organization of the Eastern bloc not created precisely in 1949 as a counterweight to the formation of the North Atlantic Alliance?

The reason for this, apparently, can be considered that there was no “Marshall Plan” for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The mechanisms of multilateral cooperation both in the economic and military-political spheres were just emerging, and there was still no political basis on which Eastern NATO could be created. The social system of the people's democracies was not stabilized. The people of these countries had no confidence in their political system, to their new ruling layer - the party-state nomenklatura. In 1949 there was neither readiness nor confidence that the military-political organization of the Eastern Bloc would be similar to the North Atlantic Alliance. Moreover, it was still unclear what the activities of the newly created Western military bloc would entail. And for such a union there was neither sufficient economic potential, nor technical means, nor reliable military personnel: most of the command staff of the Eastern European armies were representatives of the old officer corps, who did not show any desire to rebuild their armies and did not inspire confidence in the leaders of their countries, neither the Kremlin. The serious development of armies began only in the early 1950s. At that time, Eastern European troops were integrated into the Soviet battle formations and reorganized along Soviet lines. According to the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs, by the end of 1949, 187 specialists were sent to Eastern Europe to provide technical assistance, 61 military advisers, 18 civilian advisers and specialists2. In 1950, 1,000 advisers from the USSR were already sent to Czechoslovakia alone to organize its armed forces3. Soviet military advisers

To continue reading this article you must purchase full text. Articles are sent in the format PDF to the email address specified during payment. Delivery time is less than 10 minutes. Cost of one article - 150 rubles.

Warsaw Pact 1955

Cooperation between Warsaw Pact countries

The issues of joint defense have not been exhausted; it also covers problems of further development and strengthening of economic and cultural ties.

It should be pointed out fundamental difference organization of the Warsaw Pact from imperialist blocs such as NATO, WEU, etc.

First of all, unlike the aggressive NATO, WEU and similar groupings of states, the Warsaw Pact pursues purely defensive goals. This feature of the Treaty follows from the very nature of the socialist states participating in it and is an expression of their peace-loving foreign policy.

The social system of the member states of the Warsaw Pact also determined another feature of it. Imperialist alliances in the interests of their organizers - large imperialist states - are built on the principle of domination and subordination, which found its clearest manifestation in the Paris agreements. The Warsaw Pact is based on the principles sovereign equality of all its participants, mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty of states, and non-interference in their internal affairs.

Moreover, in contrast to imperialist pacts, in particular the Paris agreements, the Warsaw Pact is fully consistent with the UN Charter. The preamble explicitly states that when concluding the Warsaw Pact, its participants were guided by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. Indeed, maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations between nations, implementing international cooperation in the field of economics and culture are the declared goals of the UN, and the same goals are pursued by the conclusion of the Warsaw Pact.

Its participants pledged, in accordance with the UN Charter, to refrain in international relations from the threat or use of force and to resolve their international disputes by peaceful means. Article 4 of the Treaty, which provides for the provision of assistance by all participants to a state that has been subjected to an armed attack, is written in accordance with Art. 51 of the UN Charter, which establishes the inalienable right of states to individual or collective self-defense.

Finally, one more important difference should be pointed out between the Warsaw Pact and the agreements concluded by the imperialists. While aggressive NATO and WEU are declared by their creators to be blocs of “like-minded” states and exclude the possibility of free accession of other states to them, the Warsaw Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance is open to the accession of other countries to it, regardless of their social and political system . This feature of the Warsaw Pact reveals its defensive character to the same extent that the closed nature of the imperialist blocs testifies to their aggressiveness and orientation against other countries.

Conclusion of the Warsaw Pact

The participants continued their stubborn struggle to create a collective security system based on the participation of all European states. In Art. 11 of the Treaty states that in the event of the conclusion of a Pan-European Treaty on Collective Security in Europe, the Warsaw Pact will lose its force.

At the Geneva meeting of the heads of government of the USSR, USA, England and France, held from July 18 to 23, 1955, the Soviet Union put forward new proposals regarding the creation of a collective security system in Europe. These proposals took into account the real situation that had developed at that time. The most important factor was and still is the existence of military groupings of states in Europe. The Soviet proposals were put forward taking into account the fact that the governments of the Western powers did not yet want to liquidate the military blocs they had created - NATO and the WEU. Under these conditions, the USSR proposed dividing the creation of a collective security system into two periods. During the first of them, the duration of which, according to Soviet proposals, was determined to be two to three years, the North Atlantic Treaty of April 4, 1949, the Paris Agreement of October 23, 1954, and the Warsaw Pact of May 14, 1955 would continue to exist, but they Participants must commit themselves not to use armed force and to resolve all possible disputes by peaceful means. In the second period, in accordance with Soviet proposals, states would have to assume in full the obligations arising from the creation of a collective security system. At the same time, both the North Atlantic Treaty and the Paris Agreements, as well as the Warsaw Pact, would cease to apply.

Since further discussion of the issue of collective security in Europe and the achievement of relevant agreements required some time, and the current situation in Europe indicated the need to take urgent measures to strengthen the peace and security of peoples, the Soviet delegation at the Geneva meeting put forward another proposal: the conclusion of an agreement between states - members of existing groups in Europe.

The main thing in the treaty proposed by the USSR delegation is the obligations of the NATO and WEU member states, on the one hand, and the Warsaw Pact, on the other, not to use armed force against each other and to consult in the event of disagreements and disputes arising between them that could create threat to peace in Europe. The USSR proposal emphasized the temporary nature of this treaty. It was to be replaced by another treaty on the creation of a collective security system in Europe.

The acceptance of the Soviet proposal would undoubtedly contribute to the easing of international tension and would be a definite step towards the creation of a system of collective security, which is in the most important way strengthening global peace. But due to the position of the Western powers on none of the issues discussed at the meeting of heads of government, agreement could not be reached. It was only decided to continue their consideration.

At a meeting of the foreign ministers of the four powers, also held in Geneva in October - November 1955, the Soviet delegation again proposed concluding a Pan-European Treaty with the participation of all European states and the United States. As at the previous Geneva meeting, the USSR delegation proposed creating a collective security system in Europe in two periods. However, representatives of the Western powers in their speeches demonstrated their reluctance to part with the military groups they had created. Taking this circumstance into account, the representative of the USSR on October 31, 1955, confirming the conviction of the Soviet government that the strengthening of peace in Europe would be most facilitated by the creation of a security system in which all European states, as well as the United States, would participate, put forward a new proposal: concluding a security treaty with the participation initially of a narrower circle of states.

This proposal to a certain extent synthesized the provisions of the Soviet drafts of the Pan-European Treaty and the treaty between the existing groupings of states in Europe and at the same time differed significantly from each of them. The security treaty provided for the participation of a smaller number of states and allowed the North Atlantic Treaty, the Paris Agreements and the Warsaw Pact to remain in force for the duration of its validity. These differences from the Pan-European Treaty resembled the draft treaty on security in Europe proposed by the Soviet government at the Geneva meeting of heads of government of the draft treaty between the Western group of states and the Warsaw Pact organization. But in contrast, the Treaty on Security in Europe provided for the provision of necessary assistance, including military assistance, to any state party to the treaty in the event that it was subjected to an armed attack.

The Soviet proposal for a treaty on security in Europe provided for its replacement in the future with a broader treaty, simultaneously with the adoption of which the North Atlantic Treaty, the Paris Agreements and the Warsaw Pact would lose force. Thus, the USSR initially considered the conclusion of an agreement for part of Europe as the basis for the subsequent creation of a pan-European security system with the liquidation of existing military groups.

In an effort to find ways to a coordinated and at least gradual solution to the problem of security in Europe, the USSR delegation at the meeting of foreign ministers in Geneva on November 9 again proposed concluding an agreement between the groupings of states existing in Europe. But this time, as at the Geneva meeting of heads of government, the Soviet initiative did not meet with support from representatives of the Western powers. They refused to accept Opie Soviet projects and at the same time did not put forward their proposals that would be aimed at ensuring European security.

The Geneva meeting of foreign ministers once again convincingly demonstrated the presence of two lines in international relations: the Western powers openly opposed the efforts of the Soviet Union and other peace-loving states aimed at strengthening peace and ensuring the security of peoples with a policy of maintaining international tension and preparing for a new war.

Friendship and cooperation between the Soviet Union and the United States

The Soviet Union and other socialist countries, with the support of the progressive public around the world, continued their efforts aimed at preserving and strengthening peace, while attaching great importance to the creation of a system of collective security. “Peaceful conditions for the development of the European peoples,” said the Declaration adopted by the states parties to the Warsaw Pact in January 1956 in Prague at a meeting of the Political Consultative Committee, “can best be ensured by the creation of a system of collective security in Europe, which would replace the existing ones in Europe military groups." The Declaration proposed concluding a corresponding agreement initially between part of the European states, including the USSR, Great Britain, France, and the USA.

In those same days, the Soviet government, in order to strengthen peace, took another important step: it proposed concluding a treaty of friendship and cooperation between the Soviet Union and the United States.

The ruling circles of the Western powers rejected all Soviet proposals aimed at uniting the efforts of states to defend the cause of peace. The USSR's proposals were of exceptional importance, because they showed the people a real way to prevent a new war and contributed to strengthening the struggle against the imperialist policy of creating aggressive blocs.

The Soviet position played a major role in the fight against the Paris agreements. proposals concerning the German question. The USSR proceeded from the fact that the unification of Germany was the work of the Germans themselves; other countries could, through their policies, contribute to the rapprochement or, conversely, further alienation of the German states. While the Paris agreements created serious obstacles to German unification, Soviet proposals were aimed at bringing the German states closer together. By the way, the implementation of the Soviet proposal to create a system of collective security would contribute to the unification of Germany not only because the organization of collective security in Europe would achieve a general relaxation of international tension, but also because there would be a rapprochement between the two German states, since they, bound by the relevant treaty, would have to cooperate both with other states and among themselves. Therefore, the assertion of British Prime Minister Henry Macmillan that the Soviet proposal for a collective security treaty is allegedly based “on the continuing division of Germany” has no basis. This was just an excuse that representatives of the Western powers resorted to whenever the Soviet Union proposed concluding an agreement on the creation of a collective security system.

The Soviet government strongly supported the GDR proposal to form a confederation of two German states.

The Soviet Union took a position fundamentally different from that of the Western powers regarding the continued presence of foreign troops in Germany. While the Paris agreements essentially consolidated the occupation regime in Germany for another decades, the USSR, based on the Leninist principle of recognizing the sovereign rights of all peoples, repeatedly proposed the withdrawal of foreign troops from the territories of German states.

On November 27, 1958, the Soviet government submitted proposals to the two German states and the Western powers to eliminate the remnants of the occupation and transform West Berlin into a demilitarized free city.

Warsaw Pact Organization

On January 10, 1959, the Soviet government took a new step by presenting a draft peace treaty with Germany for consideration by states and the world community.

The conclusion of a State Treaty with Austria, the establishment of diplomatic relations between the USSR and Germany, and then with Japan - all these international actions undertaken during the period under review on the initiative of the Soviet Union were the contribution of our state to the cause of consolidating peace and strengthening mutual trust between countries and peoples.

The consistent struggle of the Soviet Union for general disarmament and for the unconditional prohibition of atomic and hydrogen weapons received approval and support from progressive forces throughout the world. In the attitude of various states to the issue of disarmament, two lines became especially clearly visible at that time. The Soviet Union, together with other peace-loving states, with the support of the progressive public around the world, tirelessly advocated for a significant reduction in weapons and armed forces, and for the prohibition of atomic and hydrogen weapons. At the same time, US imperialist circles and their European partners did their best to prevent the conclusion of a disarmament agreement.

It is known that on March 31, 1958, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted a resolution on the unilateral termination by the Soviet Union of tests of atomic and hydrogen weapons. However, the Western powers did not follow this example; on the contrary, they continued the arms race, including the West German revanchists in it.

The active foreign policy and consistent struggle of the Soviet state against the threat of a new war exposed to the people of all countries the dangerous nature of the course of the Western powers to put together aggressive military blocs with the participation of West German revanchists. During the period of preparation and ratification of the Paris agreements and in the years that followed, in all European countries and, first of all, in those whose governments signed the Paris agreements, a heroic struggle of progressive forces unfolded against the policy of dividing Europe into warring factions states, against the revival of militarism in West Germany and its inclusion in aggressive blocs.

A broad movement of peace supporters came forward to expose the threat to the security of peoples hidden in this policy. The World Peace Council, meeting at its regular session on November 18-23, 1954, appealed to the peoples to resist the ratification of the Paris Agreements and demand the immediate opening of negotiations between all European states, regardless of their system. Representatives of the most diverse social groups of the European population took part in the fight against the new conspiracy of international reaction.

On December 11, 1954, the European Conference of public and political figures who opposed the Paris Agreements opened in Paris. It was attended by about 150 delegates from 15 European countries: France, England, Germany, Italy, Greece, Norway, Danil, etc. Among the meeting participants were such prominent figures as the former Prime Minister of France Daladier, member of the English Parliament Silverman, deputy of the Italian Parliament Lombard, Dean of the Faculty of Theology in Bonn Hans Iwand and others. Public figures from the Soviet Union, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary invited to the meeting were unable to arrive in France because they did not receive entry visas.

The European Conference condemned the Paris agreements and called on public opinion, politicians, governments and parliaments of the countries concerned to reject them. This was another expression of the protest of people of common sense and good will against the arming of the Federal Republic of Germany, the consolidation of the split in Germany, and the preparation of a new war.

The working class of European countries showed especially stubborn resistance to the imperialist policy, the expression of which was the Paris agreements. This is understandable. “The working class, which mainly supplies soldiers,” wrote V.I. Lenin, “and on which material sacrifices mainly fall, is especially the natural enemy of wars, since wars contradict the goal pursued by it: the creation of an economic system based on the socialist principle.” a system that will actually realize the solidarity of peoples.”

On December 9, 1954, the seventh session of the General Council of the World Federation of Trade Unions opened in Warsaw. The next day, the General Council of the WFTU adopted an appeal to the working people of Europe, one of the most striking documents of the period of struggle against the Paris Agreement. This document expresses with utmost clarity the attitude of the working class of various countries towards the Paris agreements. It pointed out their detrimental nature to the cause of peace and democracy. The appeal contained a passionate appeal to all working men and women of Europe to join forces in the struggle against the Paris agreements and their consequences, for the creation of a pan-European system of collective security.

Creation of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA). Creation of the socialist camp and the Department of Internal Affairs.

Council for Mutual Economic Assistance. General economic intergovernmental

organization of socialist countries – Council for Mutual Economic Assistance –

founded by representatives of Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, USSR,

Czechoslovakia at the International Economic Meeting held in

Moscow in January 1949 Subsequently, the following also became members of the CMEA: Albania - with

1949 (from late 1961

The Warsaw Pact collapsed due to betrayal

unilaterally stopped participating in work

bodies of the Council), GDR - since 1950, Mongolia - since 1962, Cuba - since 1972,

Vietnam - since 1978

As a result, by the beginning of 1989, more than 400 million people, creating about 12%

volume of world production, lived in countries with centralized

planning, that is, in economic systems, where is the production decision

and employment were accepted, as a rule, at the government level. Contrary to

some reform measures, the government of the Soviet Union and

Eastern European countries liberated by Soviet troops during the Second

World War, still controlled their economies mainly

directives from the center, rather than using the market mechanism.

However, by the end of 1991 the situation changed. Communist governments

resigned or were overthrown, and the Soviet Union itself collapsed

to individual states. Most Eastern European countries and former

Soviet republics undertook economic reforms, intending

transform your economy into market economy Western style.

Few economists doubted that in the long run the transition to

market economy will raise productivity and living standards in these

countries. It is widely accepted that central planning has proven that

it is a less effective system than economic development through

laws of the market. Some Eastern European countries, such as the Czech Republic and Eastern

Germany, before the fall of communist regimes, governments were considered

advanced industrial areas, but even there it was discovered that they

there were outdated factories, poor quality goods and services, problems with

environment. A return to the market in these once thriving

areas, gave hope for rapid growth, perhaps even "economic

miracle" comparable to the restoration of Western Europe after World War II

Creation of the Department of Internal Affairs.

The leading role in most countries of Eastern Europe was played by local communists, acting under the strong influence of Moscow. In the context of the outbreak of the Cold War, Stalin and his supporters switched to harsh forceful methods of influencing internal political processes in Eastern European countries. In 1948-1949 Communists push representatives of other political forces away from the leadership, socialist transformations begin following the example of the USSR. An attempt by the leadership of Yugoslavia, led by a strong, strong-willed leader, Josip Broz Tito, to act independently caused an angry reaction from Stalin and led to a rupture in Soviet-Yugoslav relations.

In 1955, the Warsaw Pact Organization (WTO) emerged - a military-political bloc of European socialist countries. The Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, signed in the Polish capital of Warsaw, formalized the creation of a military alliance of European socialist states with the leading role of the Soviet Union. The conclusion of the agreement was a response to Germany's accession to NATO.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 |

lektsii.net - Lectures.Net - 2014-2018. (0.007 sec.) All materials presented on the site are solely for the purpose of information for readers and do not pursue commercial purposes or copyright infringement

President M.S. Gorbachev, losing power in the USSR, was unable to direct the development of the situation in Eastern Europe. Former socialist countries sought to destroy Moscow's last instruments of influence. On February 25, 1991, at a meeting of the ministers of foreign affairs and defense of the Warsaw Pact countries in Budapest, a general agreement was reached on the cessation of the activities of the Warsaw Pact military organization from April 1, 1991. On July 1, 1991, by decision of the political advisory committee of the Warsaw Pact in Prague, the Warsaw Pact Organization was completely liquidated. Somewhat earlier, on June 27, 1991, an agreement on the self-dissolution of the CMEA was signed in Budapest.

In 1990, representatives of the former socialist countries began to make statements about their intention to interact more closely with NATO countries and, in the future, to seek associated membership in this bloc. In July 1990, a NATO Council summit was held in London, at which a declaration was adopted on the need to cooperate with the former socialist countries and an official invitation was issued to their leaders to visit NATO headquarters in Brussels.

Conclusion of the Schengen Convention

The process of European integration, meanwhile, went on as usual. A few months before the reunification of Germany, on June 19, 1990, the Benelux countries, France and Germany concluded a new convention on the regime for crossing state borders at Schengen Castle (Luxembourg).

It was based on the Schengen Agreement on the gradual abolition of checks at internal borders, signed by the same countries in 1985. It was designed for five years and provided for the replacement of systematic checks of vehicles crossing the internal borders of the countries that joined it with visual surveillance of vehicles without their stops at checkpoints. The document did not require ratification and was essentially advisory. But he gave rise to the “Schengen process”.

The 1990 Schengen Convention was a lengthy document. It confirmed the principle of free movement of citizens of the European Community within the zone formed by the external borders of the states that joined it, and established uniform requirements for the issuance of entry visas to foreigners who, having received a single “Schengen” visa to enter one of the countries party to the agreement, had the right to travel to all other countries in this zone without restrictions.

Italy joined the Schengen Convention in November 1990, Spain and Portugal in 1991, Greece in 1992, Austria in 1995, and France as an experiment. On December 19, 1996, its effect was extended to Denmark, Sweden and Finland, as well as Norway and Iceland. Outside the single European zone visa regime Britain and Ireland remained.

Although the Schengen Convention was signed outside the framework of the European Community and not all EU countries initially joined it, a serious step was taken towards the creation of a single European space in the socio-economic and humanitarian (♦) spheres. In Western Europe, a special psychological climate was formed, which contributed to the strengthening of sentiment in favor of rapprochement between Western Europeans.

Signing of the Moscow Treaty on the Reduction of Strategic Offensive Arms (START-1)

Noting the weakening of M.S. Gorbachev's power, the American administration began to fear for the outcome of negotiations on concluding a strategic arms control agreement with the Soviet Union. Despite the unfavorable situation within the USSR, US President George W. Bush arrived in Moscow in July 1991. On July 30-31, 1991, the next Soviet-American summit took place, during which the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-1) was signed. According to the agreement, the USSR and the USA were to reduce their nuclear arsenals within 7 years so that each side would have no more than 6 thousand.

Warsaw Pact

units. True, in reality, according to the “rules for counting” warheads carried on heavy bombers, the USSR could have about 6.5 thousand warheads, and the USA - 8.5 thousand. The implementation of the agreements was difficult due to unpredictably developing events in the Soviet Union.

On May 14, 1955, the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance was signed in Warsaw. The document was signed by representatives of eight states: Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR and Czechoslovakia. Its signing formalized the creation of a military-political union of European socialist states - the Warsaw Pact Organization (WTO). The organization was created as a counterweight to the Western military bloc NATO, aimed against the countries of the socialist camp.

The main goals of the Warsaw Department were to ensure the security of the countries party to the treaty and maintain peace in Europe. The treaty consisted of a general introductory part and 11 articles and obligated the states included in the bloc to refrain from the use of force in their international relations. However, in the event of an attack on any of the participants, the others were to immediately provide him with military assistance.

In addition, members of the ATS pledged to act in the spirit of friendship and partnership in order to mutually strengthen economic and cultural ties on the principles of respect for independence, sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of each other. It is worth noting that membership in the Warsaw Pact was not always voluntary, and attempts by individual countries to leave it were rather harshly suppressed.

The Political Advisory Committee (PAC) became the highest body of the Department of Internal Affairs. It was authorized to conduct consultations and consider issues arising in connection with the implementation of the Treaty. As a rule, its meetings were attended by the heads of government of the countries included in the Department of Internal Affairs.

In order to ensure interaction between the armed forces of the Warsaw Warsaw states, a Joint Command of the Armed Forces was created, which was to be led by the Commander-in-Chief (the headquarters was in Moscow). Such commanders-in-chief at different times were Marshals of the Soviet Union I. Konev, A. Grechko, I. Yakubovsky, V. Kulikov, Army General P. Lushev.

The Warsaw Pact organization helped consolidate the political results of World War II and became a kind of platform for post-war development. Both military and political sides were present in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs. Close political interaction helped the participating states solve many national and international problems. It is worth adding that joint command and staff meetings were held on the territory of all participating countries. military exercises.

The intelligence services of the ATS countries constantly coordinated their actions with each other, and in 1979, a secret project of the global electronic intelligence system - SOUD was implemented, which included electronic and space reconnaissance assets of the USSR, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, the GDR, and also those not included to the Warsaw Pact of Vietnam, Mongolia and Cuba.

The Warsaw Pact organization existed until the early 90s of the last century. Albania stopped participating in the activities of the Warsaw Warfare Force back in 1962, and in 1968 formally withdrew from it - after the entry of Warsaw Warfare troops into Czechoslovakia. In 1990, the military bodies of the Organization were abolished. On July 1, 1991, in Prague, representatives of the USSR, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia signed a protocol on the final termination of the Warsaw Pact.

In the year of our country’s anniversary in the Great Patriotic War, we remember the post-war pages of history. Today is a very suitable case: exactly 60 years ago, the Soviet military bloc appeared on the world map, which today can be called “red NATO”, which is replaced today by the CSTO - Treaty Organization Collective Security. The Warsaw Pact Organization (abbreviated as Warsaw Treaty Organization) is what we will talk about today.

Before we get to the story of our first military bloc, let's look at some history. So, the year is 1945. Europe is recovering after 6 years of war. There are ruins, piles of garbage and corpses of both soldiers and civilians all around. This picture could be observed in post-war Germany and Austria. Women work on the streets instead of men. They clear away rubble and transport construction sludge. Some cannot withstand heavy physical labor and fall exhausted on the asphalt. Later, in historiography they would be called Trümmerfrauen, whose memory would later be immortalized. Europe did not recover on its own. Britain, having formally won by then, no longer plays the role of first fiddle in the world. The empire collapsed, and in Europe the interests of two new powers collided: the USSR and the USA. London sided with Washington as expected, and the USSR pursued its own independent foreign policy. All of Western Europe, as after the First World War, was driven into the financial cabal of the United States: the “Dawes Plan” replaced the “Marshall Plan”. The Americans also offered their assistance to the Soviet Union, but the authorities of the Soviet Kremlin refused it, which caused the indignation of the Americans. Soviet diplomat V. Molotov recalled: “Since we refused to join the Marshall Plan, it means we did the right thing.” Both sides helped Europe get back on its feet: the USSR dealt with Eastern Europe, which included Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Albania, Romania, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Poland and which would join the Warsaw Warsaw 10 years later, and the United States, in turn, helped its main ally in Europe - Britain, France, Italy, BeniLux and the rest, except Spain and Portugal, who held a position of neutrality. Both sides dealt with Germany and Austria together, along with England and France, dividing 2 (during the war - one) state into 4 parts. And if Austria managed to gain a neutral status and withdraw the troops of the 4 powers 10 years after the occupation, then Germany could not avoid such a fate. Post-war Germany became an arena of confrontation between two systems, splitting into the GDR (Soviet zone) and the Federal Republic of Germany (American zone).

Flag of Germany in the early post-war years (temporary), symbolizing the division of the country. 1946-49

The Americans clearly did not need the appearance of a competitor in the East and they tried with all their might to contain it. In March 1948, the Brussels Pact was concluded between Belgium, Great Britain, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and France, which later formed the basis of the “Western European Union” (WEU). It is considered to be the beginning of the formation of the North Atlantic Alliance. In parallel, secret negotiations were conducted between the United States, Canada and Great Britain on the creation of an alliance based on their civilizational unity. Negotiations between European countries and the United States and Canada soon followed to create a single union. In 1946, Churchill delivered his Fulton Speech, which marked the beginning of the Cold War. On August 18, 1948, the “Dulles Plan” was adopted, and on April 4, exactly 10 years after the end civil war in Spain, a new military bloc has appeared on the map - NATO, which today personifies an evil beast, which may soon cease to exist itself, because the signs of decay of this bloc are obvious, and NATO is simply not ready for a big war, and the growth of anti-American moods are getting higher every year and day. This year the bloc celebrated 66 years of its aggressive existence.

However, for the NATO members, everything did not start as smoothly as they wanted. Iceland is the only thorn in the bloc, which does not have its own army, which is why protests have broken out in the country.

The initiators of the unrest are considered to be the United Socialist Party of Iceland, the successor to the Communist Party of Iceland. A group of protesters on the morning of March 30, 1949 gathered behind a school in the center of Reykjavik and headed to Austurvöllur Park in front of the Althing building. Another group of protesters was already there, demanding that the Althing immediately cancel the decision to join NATO. Initially, the protest was peaceful, but then one of the protesters, a member of the Icelandic Socialist Party, shouted into a megaphone that the party leader had been taken hostage. This was the signal to begin: a fight broke out.

The Althing ignored the protesters' speeches and confirmed the country's entry into NATO, but this led to massive anti-NATO protests throughout the country. From May 18 to May 21, 1951, the largest general strike of workers in the history of the country took place, protesting against the Icelandic-American defense agreement of May 5, 1951, which was considered unequal. Over the next few years, slogans were heard more than once: “Remove Iceland from NATO and disband the army!” (isl. Ísland úr NATO og herinn burt!). Left parties entered the elections of the 50s and 60s with the promise of denouncing the bilateral Icelandic-American defense agreement, but when they entered the government coalition, they were forced to abandon this promise.

Protesters began throwing stones and bricks at the parliament building and broke all the windows. One stone almost hit the head of the Althing. The police intervened in the matter, and members of the Independence Party came to the defense of the Althing. Police beat protesters with batons and dispersed them with tear gas. The number of participants was several thousand; data on the dead and wounded is unknown. Ultimately, in 2006, parts of the US armed forces were forced to leave the base in Keflavik, although Iceland remained a member of NATO (senior Icelandic diplomat Einar Benediktsson writes that the decision to withdraw units from Iceland was made in the US long before this, and the final step was postponed for at least a decade due to the insistence of the Icelandic government).

The USSR perceived the creation of the bloc in 1949 as a threat to its own security. In 1954 in Berlin, at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the United States, Great Britain, France and the USSR, Soviet representatives were assured that NATO was a purely defensive organization. In response to calls for cooperation, the USSR sent a note on March 31, 1954 with a proposal to consider “together with interested governments the question of the USSR’s participation in the North Atlantic Treaty,” but this initiative was rejected in a reply note with the statement that the organization is “more than military” and such the proposal “contradicts the very principles on which the defense system and security of Western states depends.” In 1954, the West ratified the Paris Agreements of 1954, which provided for the formation of the Western European Union, carried out the remilitarization of West Germany and the inclusion of Germany in NATO.

But the USSR did not sit idly by. Back in 1949. The Soviet Union managed to create its first organization - CMEA, which was in the nature of economic integration. In 1952, Greece and Türkiye joined the American bloc (“First NATO Expansion”). West Germany became a member of NATO in 1955 ("Second NATO Enlargement"). A new threat loomed over the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. The Kremlin leaders took a retaliatory step. Even before the creation of the Department of Internal Affairs, Stalin said that “communism suits Poland like a mare’s saddle,” because Poland was the cornerstone of Europe. On May 14, 1955, at the Warsaw Meeting of European States to Ensure Peace and Security in Europe, a corresponding document was signed, securing a bipolar world until the end of 1991. Thus, a new bloc appeared on the map of Europe, representing an alternative to NATO. OVD - Warsaw Pact Organization.

Thus, by the beginning of the summer of 1955, the division of Europe between the USSR and the USA was finally consolidated. Dual power reigned in the world.

The Warsaw Pact is a military-political bloc that was the largest military formation in the world that has ever existed, the area of which exceeded the area of today's NATO with all 28 of its members. With about 30 million square kilometers of land, 22.1 of which were in the Soviet Union, it resembled a huge colossus, maintaining which was akin to the work of Atlas in maintaining the firmament. The strength of the Armed Forces was more than 7.5 million soldiers, 5 million of which were parts of the Red Army.

Taking into account the fact that the total military potential of the European countries participating in the Warsaw Warsaw Forces was not comparable with the military potential of the USSR, the essence of the Warsaw Warsaw Warsaw Forces was the nuclear “umbrella” of the USSR over the European socialist countries and the ability of the Soviet Armed Forces to use the territory of the allies. The creation of the Department of Internal Affairs legitimized the deployment of Soviet troops in Central European countries. In the mid-80s. A group of Soviet troops of 380 thousand people was stationed in the GDR, in Poland - 40 thousand, in Czechoslovakia - 80 thousand, in Hungary - about 70 thousand SA servicemen. At the end of the 50s. preparations were being made for the opening of a naval base on the Adriatic Sea (Albania). Within the framework of the Warsaw Warsaw War, the USSR Ministry of Defense was given the opportunity to control the armed forces of the countries participating in the Warsaw Warsaw Warsaw Forces and to rearm them. The exchange of intelligence information was established. Within the framework of the Warsaw Pact, the troops of the Warsaw Pact countries were constantly rearmed, and officers were retrained as planned. A wide exchange of military experience was launched.

According to the number of its participants, the Department of Internal Affairs adopted 8 languages, and instead of Albanian, Czech and Slovak were adopted, and all documentation and command were conducted in Russian. If NATO was a typically expansionist bloc, which it remains today, then the Warsaw Department was a counterweight and was purely defensive in nature.

Within the Department of Internal Affairs, decisions were not made by consensus. The organization was under the complete control of the Soviet leadership, in military terms - the General Staff of the USSR Ministry of Defense. Within the framework of the Warsaw Warfare, a policy of bilateral multi-level complex military-political integration of the socialist countries of Central Europe with the USSR was pursued, establishing strict control over the armies of the countries allied to the Soviet Union. The effectiveness of this policy was demonstrated in 1981, when the armed forces of the Polish People's Republic actually performed police functions, relieving the ML from the need to intervene in the internal affairs of Poland, following the example of 1968 in Czechoslovakia.

Like NATO, the Warsaw Department was not without internal contradictions and problems. In 1961, due to political and ideological disagreements between Moscow and Tirana, Albania ceased its participation in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs; in 1968, Albania formalized its withdrawal from the organization. In 1966, General de Gaulle made the same demarche, withdrawing his country from NATO, retaining only his political structures in the bloc. The leader of the National Front, Marine Le Pen, plans to slam the door with all her heart and completely withdraw the country from NATO, including not only the military, but also the political structures, if she wins the presidential elections in 2016. In the 70s and 80s, periodically Romania demonstrated its special position in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs. From time to time, leaks of military-technical information to NATO member countries were discovered in the activities of the allies.

The treaty entered into force on June 5, 1955. On April 26, 1985, due to expiration, it was extended for 20 years. Currently inactive.
The treaty consisted of a preamble and 11 articles. In accordance with its terms and the UN Charter, the states parties to the Warsaw Pact pledged to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force, and in the event of an armed attack on any of them, to provide immediate assistance to the attacked states by all means available to them. necessary, including the use of armed forces.

Management structures of the Department of Internal Affairs
The Political Advisory Committee (PAC) is the highest collective body of the organization. Created to conduct consultations and consider issues arising in connection with the implementation of the Warsaw Pact.
Unified Command of the Armed Forces (UCAF) - to ensure the interaction of armed forces and strengthen the defense capability of the countries participating in the Warsaw Pact.

Commanders-in-Chief of the OKVS:
1955-1960 - I. S. Konev - Marshal of the Soviet Union,
1960-1967 - A. A. Grechko - Marshal of the Soviet Union,
1967-1976 - I. I. Yakubovsky - Marshal of the Soviet Union,
1977-1989 - V. G. Kulikov - Marshal of the Soviet Union,
1989-1991 - P. G. Lushev - Army General.

Chiefs of Staff:
1955-1962 - A. I. Antonov - Army General,
1962-1965 - P.I. Batov - Army General,
1965-1968 - M.I. Kazakov - Army General,
1968-1976 - S. M. Shtemenko - Army General,
1976-1988 - A. I. Gribkov - Army General,
1989-1991 - V. N. Lobov - Army General.

ATS declarations
At the Moscow meeting of the PKK (1958), a Declaration was adopted, which proposed concluding a non-aggression pact between the member states of the Warsaw Pact and NATO members.

In the Declaration adopted at the meeting of the PKK in Moscow (1960), the allied states approved the decision of the Soviet government to unilaterally abandon nuclear tests, provided that the Western powers also did not resume nuclear explosions, and called for the creation favorable conditions to complete the development of a treaty to stop nuclear weapons testing.

At the Warsaw meeting of the PAC (1965), the situation that had developed in connection with plans to create NATO multilateral nuclear forces was discussed, and protective measures were also considered in the event of the implementation of these plans.

The most complete peace-loving program of the Warsaw Pact member states was formulated in the Declaration on Strengthening Peace and Security in Europe, adopted at the PCC meeting in Bucharest (1966). The program for achieving European security developed in the Declaration provided, in particular, along with the solution of other important issues, the development of good neighborly relations between all European states based on the principles of peaceful coexistence of states with different social systems; partial measures for military detente European continent; excluding the possibility of Germany's access to nuclear weapons in any form; recognition of actually existing borders in Europe, etc. To discuss issues of ensuring security in Europe and establishing pan-European cooperation, the states participating in the Warsaw Pact proposed convening a pan-European meeting.

Budapest meeting of the PKK (March 17, 1969) - adopted the Declaration on Strengthening Peace and Security in Europe. The Budapest meeting of the PKK, along with considering issues of strengthening and improving the military organization of the Warsaw Pact, paid great attention to issues of European security and adopted an Appeal to all European countries regarding the preparation and holding of a pan-European meeting with the aim of finding ways and means leading to the elimination of the division of Europe into military grouping and the implementation of peaceful cooperation between European states and peoples, towards the creation of a strong system of collective security.

The bloc participants did not remain idle. Like NATO, they also conducted joint command and staff and military exercises and maneuvers. The exercises were carried out on the territory of all countries included in the Warsaw Department. The largest included exercises codenamed “Quartet” (1963), “October Storm” (1965), “Rhodope” (1967), “Dnepr” (1967), “North” (1968), “Brotherhood in Arms” (1970), “West-81” (1981), “Shield-82” (1982).

The war in Afghanistan was the beginning of the end not only of the USSR, but also of the bloc itself. The Red Army fought alone against the Mujahideen, while its allies simply sat back in their offices. The main thesis of Russian history worked: “our allies are the army and navy; everyone else is against us.” Possibly due to the fact that Soviet leaders They were too disdainful of it, and history punished them for this. On July 1, 1991, the "Union of Peace and Socialism", the "red nuclear porcupine" ceased to exist.

It all started with the seizure of power in Poland by the Solidarity trade union under the leadership of L. Walesa. It is no longer a secret that Solidarity was nurtured by the CIA and the seizure of power actually symbolized the transfer of Polish sovereignty from one hand to another. Whether representatives of the current Polish elite remember this fact is a question for them. One way or another, Poland became the first state after Albania to leave the ATS zone. In 1993, the country joined NATO, where it remains to this day, but under a different protectorate.
Events in Poland are present in the song of the group Civil Defense "New Patriotic":

"We are not afraid of Almaty and the events in Poland
After all, there are more and more heroic patriots every day
And for the counter, a mother like Lech Walesa
We will rediscover Buchenwald and Auschwitz
Conduct experiments on all kinds of anarchists
We have steel arguments for everything

After all, we are moving along a flaming path to communism.
We are moving along a burning path to communism."

The “burning path” of the USSR ultimately led not to communism, but to its own collapse. Another saying that the Soviet leaders forgot: “they don’t go to someone else’s church with their own rules.” Today, the Americans themselves disdain it, having started the whole global mess, and now they are clearing it up and fighting terrorism alone and without the help of allies, and unfortunately, unsuccessfully, thereby signing up for inciting terrorism and stepping on the same rake.

The Red Army left, and the USSR ceased to exist. But who knows when we will come back again and when the USA will disappear - it’s a matter of time. The creation of the CSTO is one of the important steps in foreign policy post-Soviet Russia, which does not provide for the creation of puppet governments in the Eurasian space, unlike the Warsaw Internal Affairs and NATO, and is a more advanced model of a military-political bloc, taking into account all the characteristics of its participants. Therefore, I want to ask a question to those people who want to go back to the USSR: do you really want pro-Russian puppet governments to appear in Europe? Come to your senses, this is the 21st century—the age of information and information wars. No one will ever lick your anus for your desire to see this or that country in its ranks. Time to cooperate with the healthy forces of Europe, time to find common ground on equal conditions. The lesson of Soviet influence in the West, nevertheless, was learned at least formally - why again expose your country to the stigma of an occupier?
As the Spanish philosopher Jorge Santayana noted: “Whoever does not learn history is doomed to repeat it.” Experience shows that you need to learn from the mistakes of others so as not to repeat them later. Let the Americans repeat them, but this is no longer our business and there is no need for us to help them with anything. Our job is to go our own independent way.

So, have a good journey, and may the heavenly light show you the way to a clear future! And the police department will remain a memory to this day. A pleasant memory of the glorious era of military and ideological brotherhood!

On friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance between Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, the USSR and Czechoslovakia was signed on May 14, 1955 at the Warsaw Meeting of European States to Ensure Peace and Security in Europe.

Representatives of eight European states, who gathered for a meeting on May 11, 1955 in Warsaw (a representative from China was present as an observer), motivated the conclusion of the Warsaw Pact by the need to respond to the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the inclusion of West Germany and the policy of its remilitarization. Joint measures to ensure security and defense based on bilateral treaties of 1943-1949. about friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance were considered insufficient.

The goals of the Warsaw Pact were to ensure the security of the countries participating in the Treaty and maintain peace in Europe.
The treaty consisted of a preamble and 11 articles. The preamble formulated the goals of concluding the Warsaw Pact, and indicated that the parties to the treaty would respect the independence and integrity of the allied states and not interfere in their internal affairs.

The purely defensive nature of the Warsaw Pact was declared. The states parties to the Warsaw Pact committed themselves, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations (UN), to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force, to resolve disputes by peaceful means, to consult among themselves on all important international issues affecting their common interests, and declared readiness to take part in all international actions aimed at ensuring international peace and security, to achieve effective measures for a general reduction of weapons and the prohibition of weapons of mass destruction, provided for the provision of immediate assistance by all means, including the use of armed force, in the event of an armed attack in Europe on one or several states party to the Treaty.

To implement the goals and objectives of the Warsaw Pact, it provided for the creation of relevant political and military bodies, incl. Political Advisory Committee and the Joint Command of the Armed Forces of the participating States.

(Military Encyclopedia. Chairman of the Main Editorial Commission S.B. Ivanov. Military Publishing House. Moscow. in 8 volumes, 2004. ISBN 5 203 01875 - 8)

The Warsaw Pact entered into force on June 5, 1955, after the deposit of instruments of ratification by all parties to the Treaty with Poland as the depositary country.

The Warsaw Pact was concluded for 20 years with automatic extension for the next 10 years for those states that do not denounce the Treaty one year before the expiration of this period.

Albania has not participated in the work of the Warsaw Pact bodies since 1962, and in 1968 announced its denunciation.

On April 26, 1985, the member states of the Warsaw Pact signed in Warsaw the Protocol on the extension of the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance. In accordance with the Protocol, which entered into force on May 31, 1985, the Warsaw Pact was extended for 20 years with the possibility of a subsequent extension for another 10 years.

The GDR ceased to be a member of the Warsaw Pact in 1990 due to its unification with the Federal Republic of Germany.

In connection with socio-political transformations in the USSR and other countries of Eastern Europe at the turn of the 1980-90s. in February 1991, the participating countries decided to abolish the military structures of the Warsaw Pact. On July 1, 1991, in Prague, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, the USSR and Czechoslovakia signed a protocol on the complete termination of the 1955 Warsaw Pact.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources