[2] Yalta Conference

Why was there tension between the USSR and Britain and USA in 1942-43?

Stalin thought his allies were delaying opening a second front so more Soviet troops would die

When was the Yalta Conference held?

February 1945

What was agreed about German territory at Yalta?

Germany and Berlin were divided between the USA, USSR, Britain, and France. Germany was to be demilitarized, denazified, democratized, deindustrialized, and decentralized.

What was agreed about war criminals at Yalta?

The Big Three would hunt down war criminals and punish them

Who was at the Yalta Conference

Stalin, Churchill, Roosevelt

What did the Big Three agree to establish and join at the Yalta Conference

A United Nations Organisation (UNO) which would aim to keep peace

What was agreed about eastern Europe at the Yalta Conference?

That it would be a Soviet ‘sphere of influence’

Explain the main disagreement at Yalta?

Stalin wanted the USSR's border moved west into Poland, shifting Poland’s border into Germany. The West rejected Soviet demands to repatriate Germans now in Poland to Germany.

What did Stalin want to do with Poland?

Move the USSR’s border westwards into Poland. He argued that Poland could move its borders westwards into Germany.

Disagreements about German reparations at Yalta

Germany was required to pay $20 billion in reparations, with 50% going to the USSR. Stalin wanted more due to the destruction in the USSR, but Germany still paid 50%.

Disagreement about repatriations of Germans in Poland at Yalta

The West rejected Soviet demands that Germans now in Poland should be returned to Germany

Disagreements on who should run the Polish government at Yalta

Stalin wanted the Lubin Poles (mostly communist), Roosevelt and Churchill backed the London Poles (non communist)

Why did Stalin want pro-Soviet governments in Eastern Europe, and what did the Allies agree to at Yalta regarding this?

Stalin wanted pro-Soviet governments in Eastern Europe and feared free elections wouldn’t produce them. The Allies agreed that he could set up these governments.

Why was Truman concerned about the USSR gaining influence in the Far East after World War II?

Truman was concerned about the USSR gaining influence in the Far East when it was USA that did most of the fighting against Japan