Rouble Nationalization – the Way to Russia’s Freedom. Nikolay Starikov

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СКАЧАТЬ economic contracts. That would mean giving the USSR a loan of 200 million marks for seven years and supply quality equipment for this amount. This contract would come first and then it would be possible to discuss a non-aggression treaty.[112]

      On 19^th August, 1939 Hitler and Ribbentrop sent Schulenburg to Moscow again. He passes a proposition to sign a treaty which would consist of two provisions:

      Germany and the USSR shall not under any conditions resort to the use of violence against each other. The proposed duration of the treaty was 25 years.

      As an addition Germany was to use its influence to help improve the relations between Moscow and Tokyo. The last provision was crucial. It meant that signing the treaty with Germany would also solve the USSR's second problem, that being the constant aggression from Japan. This was a very serious argument. Incited by Great Britain and the USA, Japan invaded China back in the thirties[113] and started gradually biting off bits of Chinese land approaching the Russian borders. According to the English plan, the USSR was going to be attacked by Japan in the east and Germany in the west. This was to be a two-front war for the USSR, not for Germany. And the first front had already been opened. On 11^th May, 1939 a regular Japanese army attacked the Mongolian frontier posts.

      When the German ambassador proposed to Stalin the signing of the non-aggression pact, Tokyo was considered to be Berlin's ally. Meanwhile, heavy fighting was talking place at the Khalkhyn Gol River in Mongolia. The Japanese planned an offensive operation on 24^th August, 1939. Instead, it was the Red Army that started an offensive on 20^th August, 1939, that is to say on the day after the Germans offered their mediation in reconciliation with Japan. To make the Japanese more willing to negotiate it was necessary to beat them up well first.

      To assess the actions undertaken by the Soviet officials properly, one needs to realise that the negotiations with the Germans and the battles with the Japanese were happening at the same time. And Berlin did not just offer its friendship: the Germans could actually persuade the Japanese to put an end to the conflict. Pursuing a war against Russia on its own was an extremely difficult task for Japan, if at all feasible.[114] And a non-aggression treaty between Berlin and Moscow would be a perfect excuse for Tokyo to stop fighting. It would be only natural to ask the following question at this point: was there a different way to influence Japan? No, because it would have required a will to stop the war between the USSR and Japan, and this is exactly what was lacking. The situation was, in fact, quite the opposite: the English were trying to organise a rebellion in the Chinese province of Xinjiang.[115] Why did the British need that? Because it was through that province that the USSR supplied support to China and Russian weapons and counsellors helped to strengthen China, thereby weakening the Japanese troops which confronted the Red Army. By blocking the route by which Russian weapons and equipment were supplied, the English were sabotaging the fight of the Chinese and strengthening the Japanese, helping them to aggravate the conflict with Russia…

      Credit where credit is due. Stalin did realise how serious Germany's intentions were and did understand why they were in such a hurry. Therefore, despite the problems with the Japanese, he decided to take advantage of the situation with as much profit for the USSR as possible. The Germans asked to meet a minister in Moscow. The English sent someone with no particular position or authority. The situation was very telling…

      During his visit to Moscow, the German ambassador, Schulenburg, received quite a specific response from Molotov: provided that the economic agreements were signed on the same day, 19^th August, Ribbentrop could come a week later, on 26^th or 27^th August. When it was suggested that Ribbentrop could arrive earlier, Molotov objected that it was too early to speak of that before the first stage, that is the economic negotiations, had been accomplished. It was about 3 p.m., 19^th August, 1939.[116] The officials in Berlin were panicking: time was running out very fast. The Russians were being polite but did not cast any light upon the situation. And all of a sudden they said that without a loan of 200 million marks there could be no progress in the relations. What was Berlin to do? Did Hitler want to credit Stalin? Of course not. He needed money himself to finance his preparations for a war with Poland. But he had no choice. Stalin used the good old Anglo-Saxon trick in the negotiations: having created a problem, he was 'selling' ways to solve it. Today, the USA funds international terrorism and then fights it.[117] The Kremlin lingered and then suddenly offered to speed up the negotiations through financing the USSR until 1946. And to achieve a positive result, the USSR used a carrot after using a stick. Half an hour after saying that Ribbentrop could come a week later, the German ambassador was summoned to Molotov again.

      He was presented with the Soviet project of the non-aggression treaty drafted in compliance with all the rules. This is the version that was signed later on with insignificant amendments. This was an ordinary treaty; there was nothing special about it except for one detail: the draft did not specify that the document would lose become null and void should one of the parties attack a third party.[118] Let us just keep this fact in mind and proceed. This piece of information will be very useful later.

      On 20^th August (at 2 a. m.) a trade and credit agreement was urgently signed. The USSR was to receive a loan of 200 million marks that the country could spend on German equipment and pay back with raw material and food.[119]

      So, Germany did what the Kremlin had been asking for: the economic agreement was signed. Hitler, completely exhausted, went to bed at seven in the morning on 20^th August. But there was still no clarity from the Russians and the only date proposed by them for the arrival of the German delegation remained the same: 26-27^th August, 1939. This was too late for Berlin. And then Hitler decided to speed things up. On 20^th August, 1939 he sat down and wrote a personal letter to Stalin. They had never been in correspondence or spoken before. But Hitler had no time to act according to the official procedures: the attack against Poland was planned for 26^th August and there was no time to spare. 'Nevertheless, I repeat my proposition to accept my Foreign minister on 22nd August or 23rd August at the latest'[120], said Hitler in his letter. On 21 August, 1939 at 15:00 the German ambassador, Count Schulenburg, presented Hitler's letter in Moscow. Just two hours later, at 17:00, Vyacheslav Molotov gave the German ambassador the response of the head of the USSR.[121] Stalin replied practically immediately.

      '21st August, 1939.

      To the Reichschancellor of Germany, Mr. A. Hitler

      Thank you for the letter.

      I do hope that the поп-aggression treaty between Germany and the Soviet Union will he a pivotal moment in the history of political relations between our countries and will contribute to their improvement.

      The peoples of our countries need peaceful relations. The agreement of the German government to sign a поп-aggression treaty will serve as a basis to eliminate political tensions and establish peace and cooperation between our two countries.

      The Soviet government authorised me to let you know that it agrees to see Mr. Ribbentrop in Moscow on 23rd August.

      J. Stalin'[122]

      The economic agreement that the USSR needed had already been signed and the funds would be received. A non-aggression pact with the Germans could now be signed, СКАЧАТЬ