Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Official website of the State –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Exactly 81 years ago, the Crimean (Yalta) Conference, which determined the post-war world order, began. It took place from February 4 to 11, bringing together the leaders of the anti-Hitler coalition countries. The delegations included:
USSR: Joseph Stalin – Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Chairman of the State Defense Committee, Vyacheslav Molotov – People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, Andrei Gromyko – USSR Ambassador to the USA, a group of senior military and civilian advisers
USA: Franklin Delano Roosevelt – President of the United States, Edward Stettinius – Secretary of State, Harry Hopkins – the president's closest personal adviser, Admiral William Leahy, General George Marshall and other high-ranking military officers
Great Britain: Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Great Britain, Anthony Eden, Foreign Secretary, Alexander Cadogan, Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Field Marshal Alan Brooke, Admiral of the Fleet Andrew Cunningham and other members of the Chiefs of Staff Committee
The main goal of the conference was the desire of the Allied leaders to agree on plans for the final defeat of Nazi Germany and its allies. They also saw the need to develop the fundamental principles of a post-war world order, the primary instrument of which was to be the United Nations.
To reach a common understanding, the leaders of the "Big Three" met twice, the heads of government eight times, and the foreign ministers seven times. The Yalta Conference resulted in crucial decisions that shaped the shape of post-war Europe and the entire world for years to come:
Plans for final operations against Nazi Germany were agreed upon. The Soviet Union pledged to enter the war with Japan. A decision was made on Germany's unconditional surrender, complete disarmament, denazification, and division into four occupation zones: the USSR, the USA, Great Britain, and France, under the general governance of the Allied Control Council. A demand was made for reparations in kind: equipment, goods, labor, and payments: one-time and annual. The creation of a Provisional Polish Government and the expansion of borders. The return of South Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands, and the acquisition of special rights to lease a base in Port Arthur and operate railways in Menchuria. The principles of the future UN were agreed upon. The Declaration on Liberated Europe was adopted, proclaiming democratic principles.
Interesting facts about the conference:
The meeting was considered unofficial, and the media were not invited: each participant was allowed to bring no more than three or four uniformed military photographers for photography and filming. The participants were housed in three palaces: the Soviet delegation in the Yusupov Palace, the US in the Livadia Palace, and the British in the Vorontsov Palace. Although the main meetings were supposed to take place on "neutral territory," the heads of state met in the Livadia Palace. This was due to Roosevelt's inability to travel independently due to illness. The Soviet representative, Joseph Stalin, was conspicuously late for the first meeting. Gromyko's advisor, Rostislav Sergeyev, suggested that this was his way of "setting the tone" for the difficult negotiations. The Crimean palaces had to be restored practically from scratch: after two years of occupation, not even the fabric wallpaper on the walls or the brass door handles remained. More than 2,000 workers were brought in to prepare for the conference, and furniture, food, and beverages were imported from all over the Soviet Union. Winston Churchill was the last to leave the meeting place. He stayed for two days to visit Sapun Mountain in Balaklava, where the British fought in 1854-55.
The Crimean (Yalta) Conference is of paramount historical significance. Firstly, it drew a line under the most horrific event of the 20th century; secondly, it laid the foundations of the post-war order that lasted almost until the end of the century; thirdly, it ushered in a new era in the development of international relations.
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