Russia at war 1941-1945

Alongside reports of the "election campaigns" in the Baltic States, the Soviet Press published extracts from a German White Paper disclosing "Anglo-French intrigues against the Soviet Union" at the time of the Finnish War, their plans to bomb Baku, and similar matters. And then came Molotov's Supreme Soviet speech of August 1, 1940 in

which he commented in his own peculiar way on all the spectacular and tragic events of the last few months. In a devious and subtly ambiguous manner he intimated that he was not displeased and perhaps relieved—as he most certainly was—that Britain had not

given up the struggle.

Germany has achieved a great success against the [Western] Allies. But she has not solved her fundamental problem, which is to stop the war on conditions desirable to her. On July 19 the Reichskanzler offered peace negotiations to Great Britain, but the British Government rejected his offer, interpreting it as a demand for

capitulation. It replied that it would go on till final victory. The British Government has even broken off diplomatic relations with France. All this means that Great

Britain does not wish to give up her colonies and wants to go on fighting for world domination, even though this will be much more difficult for her since the defeat of France and since Italy's entry into the war.

Having delivered this side-kick at "British imperialism", Molotov then proceeded: "The end of the war is not in sight. We are likely to be faced with a new stage of the war—a struggle between Germany and Italy, on the one hand, and Britain, supported by the United States, on the other." The reference to the United States was clearly intended to suggest that Germany's chances of winning the war were not necessarily good.

It is highly significant that even when things looked blackest for Britain, the Russians took a reasonably optimistic view of her chances; thus, the chief ideological journal of the Communist Party, Bolshevik of July 15, 1940 concluded its survey by saying that Britain was "far from finished", while a similar line had already been taken by the well-known economist, Prof. E. Varga in Mirovoye Khoziaistvo i Mirovaya Politika (World Economy and World Politics) early in June, when the collapse of France was already

imminent.

As for the future of Soviet-German relations, Molotov merely repeated, almost word for word, the TASS communiqué of June 23: "There has recently been in the British and pro-British press much speculation on the possibility of discord between the Soviet Union and Germany. Attempts have been made to frighten us with the growing might of

Germany. But our relations are not based on temporary ad hoc considerations, but on the fundamental state interests of the two countries."

What he said about Britain was at any rate distinctly less ill-tempered than anything said or published for a long time: "There have been no substantial changes in our relations with England. After all the hostile acts she has committed against us, it was hard to expect any favourable developments in Anglo-Soviet relations, even though the

appointment of Cripps as British Ambassador to Moscow may point to a desire on the part of Great Britain to improve her relations with the Soviet Union."

[ Emphasis added.]

The incorporation in the Soviet Union of the Baltic States, Bessarabia and North

Bukovina was presented by Molotov in a manner that was to be expected. It was, no

doubt, pleasing to see the Soviet Union recover some of the territories which had once belonged to the old Tsarist Empire, and even to annex an area— Northern Bukovina,

including the large city of Czernowitz—which had never been part of it. Northern

Bukovina, Molotov said, was chiefly inhabited by Ukrainians and Moldavians—and

these, as well as the inhabitants of Bessarabia, had now become Soviet citizens "with great joy". There was now every reason to believe that relations with Rumania would become normal again. As for the Baltic States, Molotov explained their incorporation in the Soviet Union in the following terms: