Yalta Conference

Done by: Kritika, Rupadri, Shneha, Shreyoshi, Swagata

What was Yalta Conference?
• In February 1945, the big three – Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin
met at Yalta in the Crimea region of USSR to agree on a post
war settlement and decide what to do with Germany once it has
been defeated.
• In many ways, Yalta Conference set scene for the rest of cold
war on Europe.
Outcomes of the Yalta Conference
• Germany would be divided into four zones of occupation with the USSR, Britain, France and the USA each controlling a
zone. France had been liberated from Nazi Germany and was included at the conference partly due to pressure from the
French leader, General de Gaulle, but also because Britain wanted a European ally with whom it could share the cost of the
post-war reconstruction of Germany.
• The German capital, Berlin, was about 100 miles inside the Soviet zone and it, too, was to be divided into four zones, each
controlled by one of the Allied powers. Berlin would become a continuing source of tension once the Cold War began in
earnest.
• All countries freed from Nazi control were to be guaranteed the right to hold free, democratic elections to choose their own
governments. This commitment was released as an official joint statement, the Declaration on Liberated Europe. However,
Stalin was offered a sphere of influence in Eastern Europe where communist ideals would dominate.
• Again, Stalin committed to joining the war against Japan, once Germany had been defeated. This was important to the
Americans who were suffering heavy losses in the Pacific, despite the fact they were gradually pushing back the Japanese.
• All the leaders made a commitment to pursue, and put on trial, suspected Nazi war criminals.
• The Allies agreed to the setting up of the United Nations, an organization dedicated to international cooperation and the
prevention of war.
• The only disagreement was regarding Poland. The Big Three had to compromise about Poland. Stalin wanted to take Polish
territory and allow Poland to take German territory. The other two let him have his way with Poland, but he had to agree to
not interfere in Greece, where a civil war between monarchists and Communists was brewing.
Significance of the Yalta Conference
Several agreements and promises made during the Yalta Conference were broken which
led to tensions between Britain, the United States and Russia and the start of the Cold
War.
• Two weeks after the Yalta Conference the Soviets violated the Declaration of Liberated
Europe by pressurizing the King of Romania to appoint a Communist government
• Stalin had arrested the non-communist leaders of Poland and the Soviets refused to
allow more than 3 Non-Communist Poles to serve in the 18 member Polish Government
• The promise of free elections in Eastern Europe was being broken and Communists
were coming to power in other Eastern European countries
• The Soviets began to demand unreasonable war reparations from Germany
• The broken promises led to growing distrust of the Soviets and strong
Anti-Communist sentiments
• These events all contributed to the causes of the Cold War
Aftermath of the Yalta Conference: The Potsdam
Conference
Open disagreements erupted between the US and the Soviets during the Potsdam Conference that was held in
July 1945, just two months after the Yalta Conference. During this short period of time there were major
changes in the leadership of the United States and Great Britain. President Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945
and Vice-President Harry Truman took office and Clement Attlee won the election replaced Winston
Churchill as the British Prime Minister. The agreements of Yalta dissolved into the disagreements of
Potsdam.
• At the time of the Yalta Conference the Americans believed they needed the Soviets to help in the war
against Japan. This changed by the time of the Potsdam Conference as the US had successfully tested the
atomic bomb
• Harry Truman, who was strongly anti-communist and highly suspicious of Stalin, adopted a hard line
against the Russians
• Stalin was forced to back down on his demands for heavy war reparations
From Germany but refused to uphold the Declaration of Liberated Europe
• Relations deteriorated and the goodwill between the once Allied nations dissolved
• The Iron Curtain was set to descend separating the Communist countries of
Eastern Europe from the West
• Soviet-American wartime cooperation would degenerate into the Cold War
Thank You!