Germany-Soviet Relations in the Interwar Period (1918–1939)

The relationship between Weimar/Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union was a volatile mix of pragmatic cooperation and ideological hostility.

1918–1922: Revolutionary Parallels

Both emerged from WWI shattered: Germany defeated, monarchical collapse; Russia revolutionized, Bolshevik consolidation. Pariah status drew them together.

1922: Treaty of Rapallo

Diplomatic normalization + secret military cooperation. Germany circumvented Versailles restrictions by training tank/air crews and testing chemical weapons on Soviet soil (Lipetsk, Kazan, Tomka). USSR gained German technology and industrial expertise.

1926: Treaty of Berlin

Reaffirmed neutrality; trade expanded. But ideological divergence deepened—Nazi rise alarmed Moscow.

1933–1939: Deterioration → Pact → War

• Hitler's anti-Bolshevism made conflict inevitable.
• 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact: Shocking non-aggression + secret partition of Poland/Baltics.
• 1941 Operation Barbarossa: Ideological war of annihilation; 27M Soviet dead.

Legacy

A cautionary tale: realpolitik cannot indefinitely suppress existential ideological conflict. The interwar dance delayed but did not prevent the 20th century's bloodiest clash.