Assess Stalin’s role in the collapse of the wartime alliance

Outline

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Introduction

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1st paragraph

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Pre war tension and Stalin’s role

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Communism vs capitalism

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The countries in the Grand Alliance were ideological enemies, which they put a side to fight Hitler, however when this enemy was defeated their ideological differences became apparent again

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Collective security vs appeasement

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Britain’s policy of appeasement was seen by Stalin as an attempt to push Hitler towards a war on USSR soil. He saw the Munich Agreement (Sep 1938) as evidence on this as this allowed Hitler to expand his Eastern border without consulting Stalin

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Stalin did however sign the Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact in 1939 however the motives behind this is debateable

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Collective security

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AJP Taylor, Geoffrey Roberts

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Stalin wanted an alliance with Britain and France against Hitler and was forced to sign the nazi-soviet non-aggression pact due to the reluctance of Britain and France to negotiation with Stalin

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Roberts argue that every contact with Germany was a response to German approach

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Germanists

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Robert Tucker

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Collective security was a façade and wanted German pact all along

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2nd paragraph

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Wartime tension and Stalin’s role

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The opening of the second front

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Tension was created by the Allies reluctance to open a second front, which Stalin has requested as early as 1941 but this was not done until June 1944. Stalin saw this as a part of a deliberate plan to ensure that the USSR was seriously weakened

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3rd paragraph

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Post war tension and Stalin’s role

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The question about Germany

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Despite there being a previous outline for reparations from Germany to the USSR, at Yalta it had been agreed that $10 billion would be a starting point for negotiation, though the US and Britain did feel that Stalin asked for too much, Truman backed down on this outline and would only agree to the USSR getting reparations from Eastern Germany, the poorer and agricultural part of Germany, and 25% of the machinery from the western zones, if the USSR in return sent 60% of the value of the aid it had received in the form of goods and raw materials

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The western leaders also backed down on the Percentages Agreement which would secure the Soviet sphere of influence and suggested that this should be decided by the planned United Nations Organisation

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US nuclear monopoly

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This was instrumental in the end of the war time alliance as this posed a threat to the USSR

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End of lend-lease and denial of loan

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The lend-lease agreement was ended without notice and the US denied a Soviet request for a loan of $1000 billion

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Conclusion