Wartime Conferences

1. Wartime Conferences History 12 Ms Leslie

2. Atlantic Charter • August 1, 1941 • President Roosevelt met Prime Minister Churchill on board a ship in Placentia Bay, Newfoundland. • statement of war aims to work for a world in which democratic values prevail. • economic equality among nations ‘after the final destruction of the Nazi tyranny.’

3. United Nations Declaration • On Jan 1, 1942, • 26 nations agreed not to sign a separate peace treaty with any of the Axis Powers. • Specific post-war aims remained vague.

4. Casablanca Conference. • Jan 26, 1943 • Roosevelt and Churchill meet. Stalin won’t leave Russia • decision to invade Europe through Italy was formalized. • An agreement to make landings in northern Europe in 1944 – though the Soviets wanted it in1943.

5. Quebec Conference • August 11 and 24th, 1943 • Roosevelt and Churchill met again and came to an agreement on the logistics of a cross-channel invasion. • This was a condition that the Americans insisted upon in return for the participation in the invasion of Italy. • They also agree on the Morgenthau Plan

6. Morgenthau Plan. • Germany was to be partitioned into two independent states. • Germany's main centers of mining and industry, including the Saar area, the Ruhr area and Upper Silesia were to be internationalized or annexed by neighboring nations. • All heavy industry was to be dismantled or otherwise destroyed.

8. Moscow Pact Declaration on General Security. • October 30, 1943 • establishment of a world organization after the war

9. Cairo Conference • Nov 22-26, 1943 • Roosevelt, Churchill and Chiang Kai Shek met. (Chiang = China’s military leader.) • Little was agreed upon, though Roosevelt promised an operation in the Indian Ocean to Chiang. (This idea was later dropped). • Churchill and Roosevelt moved on to meet with Stalin on December 1 at the Tehran Conference.

10. The Tehran Conference • November 28 and December 1, 1943 • the three countries to recognize Iran's independence. • the Soviet Union was required to pledge support to Turkey if that country entered the war • central aim of the conference was to plan the final strategy for the war against Nazi Germany

11. While Churchill really didn’t want to be pinned down on Operation Overlord (D-Day), the invasion of Northern France, the Americans did ensure that a firm commitment was made to Stalin on the timing of this event. • Britain wanted to hammer out a plan for a port-war world • American thought everything would work itself out after the defeat of Hitler

12. In private meetings, Stalin and Roosevelt agreed on the need to liquidate the British and French Empires after the war. • Roosevelt clearly did not trust either Churchill or DeGaulle.

13. What to do about Poland? • USSR and Poland disagreed on borders • The Poles wanted the August 1939 boundary; the Soviets favoured the November 1939 borders

14. What to do about Germany? • Churchill opposed splitting it up • Germany would be needed to keep Communist influence out.

15. How to end the war? • Soviet Union would enter the war against Japan once Nazi Germany was defeated • Axis powers should face unconditional terms of surrender

16. Stalin dominates the Tehran conference. • Roosevelt is very sick and does not stand up to him • Stalin is able to change Poland’s borders to hw he wants them • Allow the USSR to sent up puppet governments in Poland, Czechoslovakia, the Baltic states and Romania.

17. Yalta Conference • February 4-11, 1945 1) establishing a policy on liberated areas. 2) Settling Pacific Strategy. • USA and UK militarily weakened after the battle of the Bulge. Stalin has the upper hand. • Stalin wants a $6 billion loan from USA

18. Stalin demands a dismemberment of Germany • Churchill opposes • Stalin wants to set reparations at $20 billion, of which the Soviets get $12 billion • Churchill disagrees, but is vetoed • DeGaulle is recognized as the official French leader (he is not invited to Yalta)

19. Key issue Poland • Stalin kept wanting to push borders westward. • Roosevelt too sick to confront Stalin • Stalin wants to deport Germans from Poland • UK and USA want free elections in Poland – Stalin agrees but there’s nothing put in place to ensure them

20. In return for getting what he wanted, Stalin co-operates with the creating of the United Nations.

21. Regarding the Far East – Stalin says he will join the war with Japan 2-3 months after the fall of Germany. • Stalin allies with Chiang. – in return Stalin gets some Asian islands and Outer Mongolia • Russia to also get access to the Manchurian railroad – port access.

22. Yalta = last point of co-operation in the alliances • On April 12, 1945 Roosevelt died, and was replaced by his Vice-President, Harry Truman. • Roosevelt didn’t like him. As a result he had been kept in the dark on foreign policy.

23. Truman stands up to USSR’s demands. He insults Molotov and as a result alienated Russian-Americans but gains Polish-American support

24. Potsdam Conference • July 17, 1945 • Churchill, Stalin and Truman • Soon Churchill too was gone – replaced by the new Labour Prime Minister, Clement Atless. • Little agreement on Germany’s de-nazification • Agree on Nuremberg trials

25. Agree on a Joint Control Council over Germany by 4 military Commanders. • Each occupier would take what they wanted from each zone • the Soviets would get a further 10% of German capital equipment from the Western zones and a further 15% in exchange for fool and coal.

26. Berlin would also be jointly occupied. • German populations were pushed out of Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia –removing the nationalities issue from future political disputes. • Austria was separated from Germany.

27. Americans wanted to make sure Stalin would keep his promise about joining the war in the East – and the atomic bomb hadn’t been perfected. • Stalin was kept in the dark about the New weapon • Japanese started putting out peace feelers through Russia – America ignored them

28. At Potsdam the warning of ‘prompt and utter destruction’ of Japan was made, but there was no explicit threat or even an inquiry into Japanese surrender requirements. • The use of the bomb revolutionized diplomacy as well at warfare.

29. The bomb makes questions • to what extent could the bomb be applied directly to diplomatic influence? • Would it give the Americans diplomatic leverage in Eastern Europe? • Should the US maintain sole control over this technology? • Should the UN control it?

30. foreign ministers met again in London in September, 1945 • America demanded control in Eastern Europe • Soviets refused foreign observers • Met again in Moscow – Stalin makes concession sin Romania and Bulgaria • In return America recognized satellite governments

31. The Soviets agreed to the creation of the UN Atomic Energy Commission and a general Peace Conference was set for the summer of 1946. • The Conference would be held and peace treaties eventually signed in 1947, but all of this was over shadowed by the confrontation between East and West that was taking shape at the cold war • End 