"The Soviet Role in World War II: Realities and Myths" Topic

"This year marks the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II—the end of the fighting in Europe in May 1945 and the end of the fighting in Asia in September 1945. Although precise numbers of those killed in the six years of warfare from 1939 to 1945 are impossible to tabulate, the total deaths attributable to the war exceeded 70 million, more than in all other wars in history combined. Roughly two-thirds of those who died were non-combatants.

The war in Europe began on 23 August 1939, when the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed a pact that created a partnership between them in dividing up Poland and the rest of Eastern Europe. Under the terms of this pact, the German Wehrmacht moved into western Poland on 1 September 1939, and the Soviet Red Army moved en masse into eastern Poland sixteen days later. Great Britain, which had signed a bilateral defense treaty with Poland earlier that year, declared war against Germany as required by a secret protocol to the treaty. However, the protocol, as we now know, applied only to defense against Germany, not against any other country. Similarly, France, which also had signed a bilateral defense treaty with Poland that expressly applied only to Germany, declared war against Germany hours after Britain did. But neither the British nor the French government declared war against the Soviet Union. In Britain, where the public did not know about the secret provision to the British-Polish defense accord, the failure to declare war on the USSR was controversial at the time, seeming to give carte blanche to the Soviet Union for its conquests…"

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Armand

In practice, the article almost solely concentrates on the Soviet part in the war pre June 1941, but that is still of value. Particularly interesting is the complete taboo in modern Russia about any discussion of that period, as occupiers and of their role as "Non-aggressors", in practice tools of the Nazi regime

The Soviets played almost zero role in the war with Japan. They kept their peace deal in place until it didn't matter, using troops from Siberia against the Nazis. Then when Japan was in collapse they attacked China and propped up the fortunes of the CCP and the Communist Party of North Korea. Their amphibious landing at Sakhalin Island was a disastrous joke against a small garrison that has already formally surrendered. The Soviets lost multiple landing craft and ships given them by the US under Lend Lease and took 10:1 casualties.

The main threat posed by the Soviets to Japan was the possibility of occupation of their north most island.

SBminisguy,
I think you are being a bit unfair. The Imperial Japanese Army forces in China/Manchuria were many times greater than what the US had faced in the PTO. They were relatively untouched and to be recalled for defense of the home islands

The Russians launched their offensive exactly three months to the day after the surrender of Germany, during which time they had to rest, re-fit and re-supply the necessary forces and transport them about 6,000 miles to the east. A look at the Soviet order of battle in Glantz's study (see below) will provide an idea of the scope of the undertaking.

Go here -

PDF link

Strictly my opinion, of course.

B

Thanks.

Armand