1944: The liberation of Europe:

Of the events of 1944, 8 out of 15 experts and readers chose the liberation of Eastern Europe from the fascist occupation. It began on March 27, 1944, when Soviet troops entered the territory of Romania.

Great hopes

From the statement of the Soviet government of April 2, 1944:

"The Soviet Union does not pursue the goal of acquiring any parts of the Romanian territory or change the existing social system."

Great hopes from the statement of the Soviet government of April 2, 1944: "The Soviet Union does not pursue the goal of acquiring any parts of the Romanian territory or change the existing social system." The King of Romania Mikhai removed the fascist regime from power and declared war on Germany. The Soviet units entered Bucharest and moved south. From the appeal of the command of the 3rd Ukrainian Front dated September 28, 1944: "Warrior, you entered the territory of your own in the spirit and blood of Yugoslavia. <...> Always and everywhere remember that you came to Yugoslavia not to impose your own laws and orders, but to overtake and destroy the Hitler robbers." The tragedy of Warsaw on August 1, 1944, without waiting for the arrival of the Soviet tanks, the fighters of the underground anti -communist army Kraiova raised an uprising in Warsaw. From the Epistle of Stalin to the Prime Minister of England to Churchill of August 4, 1944: "The Warsaw action is a reckless, terrible adventure standing the population of large casualties. Polish representatives did not provide us with any information about the alleged uprising, so the Soviet command came to the conclusion that it should be dissolved from this adventure." For two months, German guns and planes destroyed the city. The Poles fiercely resisted, but stepped back step by step. At that time, while bloody battles were going on in Warsaw, Soviet troops were waiting on the other side of the Vistula. On October 2, the uprising was brutally crushed. 200 thousand residents of Warsaw were killed in his fire. The Chekists were taken in the Polish Communist Party, about 1 thousand people consisted of, in Romanian - 2 thousand, in the Bulgarian - even less. However, with the help of Moscow, these small parties began to eliminate competitors and seize power. From the English newspaper Times dated December 15, 1944: "In Bulgaria, immediately after the overthrow of the pro -fascist regime, mass cleaned by the Communists unfolded. <...> About 20 thousand people were already sentenced to death or killed without trial. Even more are waiting for their fate in prisons and specially created camps. Among the executed are the four former prime minister and brother of Tsar Boris." From the statement of the Central Committee of the Polish Socialist Party of February 17, 1945: "The Poles of the Kremlin’s employees who have seized in Poland are opening a war against the Polish people and its legally elected representatives. Members of the PSP and other parties are expelled from local authorities, and their places are occupied by the Communists. Many of our comrades are captured and taken away in an unknown direction ...". The Yalta Conference of the countries of the Anti -Hitler coalition of 1945 adopted a declaration that the country freed from the fascism of the country should independently choose the development path. However, the Kremlin from the very beginning violated this principle. His efforts in Eastern Europe were planted by Stalinist socialism. The one who floats with the flow wins, and not across Vladlen Sirotkin, a professor at the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation during the 50th anniversary of the Yalta Conference, I ended up at the symposium of historians, at the same round table in the Levidian Palace, at which Stalin, Ruzvelt and Churchill decided the fate of post-war Europe and the world. I sat in the place of Churchill and recalled how the British prime minister described preparations for this section of the world. In 1944, he, face with Stalin, discussed the issue of spheres of influence in post-war Europe. Since Stalin did not know English, and Churchill Russian, the interlocutors wrote numbers on the geographical map, meaning that, say, in Romania and Bulgaria 90 percent would receive the USSR, in Greece 90 percent would go to England, and so on. Stalin, having bargained, signed the final alignment with a stroke of the blue pencil. This, in essence, banal division was assigned to the Yalta and Potsdam conferences. However, very soon it became clear that the West and East could not pursue a joint policy in peacetime. They have too different goals. The Americans proposed a Marshall plan, gave funds to restore Germany’s economy. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, did not have enough gunpowder for such measures against the Eastern European countries - we had too great the post -war devastation. Soviet newspapers assured that in the countries of Eastern Europe, the era of new democracy, which occupies an intermediate position between the bourgeois and the socialist. In fact, the Kremlin put all his strength to create pro -Soviet regimes there. One of the Soviet officers, who served after the war in Romania, told me how the Communists seized power in 1947 before his eyes. Armed to the teeth of Soviet soldiers were put in trucks. And for three days they traveled day and night to Bucharest, thus intimidating the bourgeois opposition. The fright of society was so strong that someone hastily emigrated, someone hid underground. At this moment, the Communists formed a new government led by Georgiu-Dezh. And the king was sent abroad. According to the same scheme, Clement Gotvald, with the help of workers, made a coup in Czechoslovakia in 1947 and led the Communist Government to power. In Yugoslavia and Albania, Josip Broz Tito and Enver Khoja simply shot an opposition. The Western countries, meanwhile, managed to create Christian democratic parties from activists of anti-fascist, but not communist, movement. In 1949, after the unification of the zones of the occupation of Western allies, the Federal Republic of Germany appeared. In response in 1950, the Soviet Union created the GDR. And the world split into two camps, into "two worlds - two systems." What is the conclusion? We walked against the course for a long time, but we would have to go along. Along along, holding on to its shore - until the bridge uniting both shores appears ahead.

The King of Romania Mikhai removed the fascist regime from power and declared war on Germany. The Soviet units entered Bucharest and moved south.

From the appeal of the command of the 3rd Ukrainian Front of September 28, 1944:

"Warrior, you entered the territory of Yugoslavia’s native spirit and blood. <...> Always and everywhere remember that you came to Yugoslavia not in order to impose your laws and orders, but in order to overtake and destroy the Hitler robbers."

The tragedy of Warsaw

On August 1, 1944, without waiting for the arrival of Soviet tanks, the fighters of the underground anti -communist army Kraiova raised an uprising in Warsaw.

From the Epistle of Stalin to the Prime Minister of England to Churchill of August 4, 1944:

"The Warsaw action is a reckless, terrible adventure standing the population of large casualties. Polish representatives did not provide us with any information about the alleged uprising, so the Soviet command came to the conclusion that it should dissolve this adventure."

For two months, German guns and planes destroyed the city. The Poles fiercely resisted, but stepped back step by step. At that time, while bloody battles were going on in Warsaw, Soviet troops were waiting on the other side of the Vistula. On October 2, the uprising was brutally crushed. 200 thousand residents of Warsaw were killed in his fire.

Chekists take up the case

In the Polish Communist Party there were about 1 thousand people, in Romanian - 2 thousand, in the Bulgarian - even less. However, with the help of Moscow, these small parties began to eliminate competitors and seize power.

From the English newspaper "Times" dated December 15, 1944:

"In Bulgaria, immediately after the overthrow of the pro -fascist regime, mass cleaning arranged by the Communists unfolded. <...> about 20 thousand people were already sentenced to death or killed without trial. Even more are waiting for their fate in prisons and specially created camps. Four former prime minister and brother of Tsar Boris."

From the statement of the Central Committee of the Polish Socialist Party of February 17, 1945:

"The Kremlin’s hires who have seized the power in Poland are opening a war against the Polish people and its legally elected representatives. Members of the PSP and other parties are expelled from local authorities, and their places are occupied by the Communists. Many of our comrades are captured and taken away in an unknown direction ...".

The Yalta Conference of the countries of the Anti -Hitler coalition of 1945 adopted a declaration that the country freed from the fascism of the country should independently choose the development path. However, the Kremlin from the very beginning violated this principle. His efforts in Eastern Europe were planted by Stalinist socialism.

The one who floats with the flow wins, and not across

Vladlen Sirotkin,
Professor of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation

In the days of the 50th anniversary of the Yalta Conference, I ended up at the symposium of historians, at the same round table in the Levadian Palace, at which Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill decided the fate of post-war Europe and the world. I sat in the place of Churchill and recalled how the British prime minister described preparations for this section of the world. In 1944, he, face with Stalin, discussed the issue of spheres of influence in post-war Europe. Since Stalin did not know English, and Churchill Russian, the interlocutors wrote numbers on the geographical map, meaning that, say, in Romania and Bulgaria 90 percent would receive the USSR, in Greece 90 percent would go to England, and so on. Stalin, having bargained, signed the final alignment with a stroke of the blue pencil. This, in essence, banal division was assigned to the Yalta and Potsdam conferences.

However, very soon it became clear that the West and East could not pursue a joint policy in peacetime. They have too different goals. The Americans proposed a Marshall plan, gave funds to restore Germany’s economy. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, did not have enough gunpowder for such measures against the Eastern European countries - we had too great the post -war devastation.

Soviet newspapers assured that in the countries of Eastern Europe, the era of new democracy, which occupies an intermediate position between the bourgeois and the socialist. In fact, the Kremlin put all his strength to create pro -Soviet regimes there.

One of the Soviet officers, who served after the war in Romania, told me how the Communists seized power in 1947 before his eyes. Armed to the teeth of Soviet soldiers were put in trucks. And for three days they traveled day and night to Bucharest, thus intimidating the bourgeois opposition. The fright of society was so strong that someone hastily emigrated, someone hid underground. At this moment, the Communists formed a new government led by Georgiu-Dezh. And the king was sent abroad.

According to the same scheme, Clement Gotvald, with the help of workers, made a coup in Czechoslovakia in 1947 and led the Communist Government to power. In Yugoslavia and Albania, Josip Broz Tito and Enver Khoja simply shot an opposition.

The Western countries, meanwhile, managed to create Christian democratic parties from activists of anti-fascist, but not communist, movement. In 1949, after the unification of the zones of the occupation of Western allies, the Federal Republic of Germany appeared. In response in 1950, the Soviet Union created the GDR. And the world split into two camps, into "two worlds - two systems."

What is the conclusion? We walked against the course for a long time, but we would have to go along. Along along, holding on to its shore - until the bridge uniting both shores appears ahead.