| June 1940 Soviet Ultimatum |
Article Index for June |
Shopping Soviet |
Website Links For June |
Information AboutJune 1940 Soviet Ultimatum |
|
BACKGROUND Both Bessarabia and Bukovina had been united with Romania in 1918. This was internationally recognized by peace treaties after the first world war, signed by Britain and France. Lenin ahd initally supported the right of self-determination for the people included in the former Tsarist empire, of which Bessarabia had been a part. However, subsequently Russia steadfastly refused to recognize the union of Bessarabia and Romania, but nevere mentioned any claims to Bukovina, which had never been part of the Russian empire. In the meantime, the Soviets set up an "Autonomous Moldovan SSR" on the left bank of the Nistru in 1924. This was logically seen by the Romanian government as another Soviet threat. On July 21 1936 , Maxim Litvinov and Nicolae Titulescu , the Soviet and Romanian Ministers of Foreign Affairs, signed a "Protocol of Mutual Assistance". It was interpreted as a non-aggression treaty between Romania and the Soviet Union, that ''de facto'' recognized the existing Soviet-Romanian border. The protocol stipulated that any common Romanian-Soviet action should be priorly approved by France. In negotiating with the Soviet Union, Titulescu was highly criticized by the Romanian far-right. However, both Titulescu and Litvinov were dismissed in 1936, respectively 1939. MOLOTOV-RIBBENTROP PACT In the secret appendix of the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact , the Soviet Union asserted "its interest" in Bessarabia, and Germany "''declares its complete political disinteredness in these areas''". In June 1940 , just days before the Soviet ultimatum, France 's surrender and Britain 's retreat from Europe rendered meaningless their assurances to Romania. On June 2 , Germany informed the Romanian government that in order to receive territorial guarantees, Romania should consider negotiations with the Soviet Union. The German Minister of Foreign Affairs Joachim Von Ribbentrop was informed by the Soviet intentions regarding Bessarabia and Bukovina on June 24 . Ribbentrop worried more for the ''fate'' of the ethnic Germans in these two provinces, alleging the number of Germans in Bessarabia to be 100,000. Also, Ribbentrop pointed out clearly that Germany has strong economical interests in the rest of Romanian ''territory'', in what could appear as a partition of Romania between Germany and the Soviet Union. The text of the ultimatum note of June 26 distorted the demographic realities, alleging that Bessarabia is populated mainly by Ukrainians . The Soviet Government demanded the northern part of Bukovina , a province considered to be connected with Galicia that had been annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939 Poland 's Partition . The northern part of Bukovina was requested as a minor "''reparation for the great loss produced to the Soviet Union and Bessarabia's population by 22 years of Romanian domination of Bessarabia''". The Soviet ultimatum note of June 27 requested the evacuation of the Romanian government from Bessarabia and northern Bukovina in four days. On the next day, advised by both Germany and Italy, the Romanian government, led by Gheorghe Tatarescu under the rule of king Carol II , agreed to submit to the Soviet pretentions and the territory was ceded at the beginning of July. On August 2 , the Soviet government created the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , with its capital at Chisinau , by joining the central part of Bessarabia with the western part of the Moldavian ASSR , created within the Ukrainian SSR in 1924 . The northern Bukovina and Bessarabia, the southern Bessarabia (including access points to the Black Sea , the mouth of Danube , and Nistru estuary) and the rest of the Moldavian ASSR were partitioned to Ukrainian SSR. AFTERMATH The territorial concessions of that year (1940) produced deep sorrow and resentment in the Romanian population, and hastened the decline in popularity of the regime led by King Carol II Of Romania . He eventually fled the country and a government led by the Iron Guard and Ion Antonescu took power. Overall, the desire to recapture lost territory was the deciding factor leading to the entry of Romania into World War II on the side of the Axis against the Soviet Union . EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|