The Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940The World Book Encyclopedia "Soviet occupation of the Baltic States" at Encyclopædia BritannicaThe History of the Baltic States by Kevin O'Connor refers to the military occupation of the Republic of Latvia by the Soviet Union under the provisions of the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany and its Secret Additional Protocol signed in August 1939."The Soviet occupation and incorporation of Latvia" at Encyclopædia Britannica
In 1989, the USSR condemned the 1939 secret protocol between Nazi Germany and itself that had led to the invasion and occupation of the three Baltic countries, including Latvia. In July 1989, the people of Latvia began the process of restoring their independence. In 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Latvia's sovereignty was fully restored. On 22 August 1996, the Latvian parliament adopted a declaration that stated that the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 was a military occupation and an illegal incorporation.CASE OF KONONOV v. LATVIA European Court of Human Rights. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
The occupation was condemned by the European Court of Human Rights,European Court of Human Rights cases on Occupation of Baltic States the Government of Latvia,The Occupation of Latvia at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia the United States Department of State,"U.S.-Baltic Relations: Celebrating 85 Years of Friendship" at state.gov and the European Union.Motion for a resolution on the Situation in Estonia by EU
Background
1918–1939: historical background In the aftermath of the October Revolution of 1917, Latvia declared its independence on 18 November 1918. After a prolonged War of Independence against Soviet Russia (the predecessor of the Soviet Union), the two countries signed a peace treaty on 11 August 1920. In its Article 2 Soviet Russia "unreservedly recognises the independence and sovereignty of the Latvian State and voluntarily and forever renounces all sovereign rights (...) to the Latvian people and territory." The independence of Latvia was diplomatically recognised by the Allied Supreme Council (France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Belgium) on 26 January 1921. Other states followed the suit. On 22 September 1921, Latvia was admitted to membership in the League of Nations and remained a member until the formal dissolution of the League in 1946. On 5 February 1932, a non-aggression treaty with the Soviet Union was signed. The treaty was based on the 11 August 1920 treaty, whose basic agreements inalterably and for all time form the firm basis of the relationship of the two states.
Relevant treaties between USSR and Latvia Before World War II, the Republic of Latvia and USSR had both signed and ratified following treaties:
Kellogg–Briand Pact 27 August 1928 Kellogg–Briand Pact renouncing war as an instrument of national policyKellogg-Briand Pact at Yale University Non-aggression treaty Latvia, USSR on 5 February 1932League of Nations Treaty Series, 1934, No. 3408, pp. 123–125 and 127 The Convention for the Definition of Aggression On 3 July 1933 for the first time in the history of international relations, aggression was defined in a binding treaty signed at the Soviet Embassy in London by USSR and among others, Latvia.Aggression Defined at Time magazineLeague of Nations Treaty Series, 1934, No. 3391. Article II defines forms of aggression. There shall be recognized as an aggressor that State which shall be the first to have committed one of the following actions: Relevant chapters: Second: invasion by armed forces of the territory of another State even without a declaration of war. Fourth: a naval blockade of coasts or ports of another State.
1939–1940: the road to loss of independence
German–Latvian non-aggression pact
The German–Latvian non-aggression pact was signed in Berlin on 7 June 1939. In light of the German advance in the east, the Soviet government demanded an Anglo–French guarantee of the independence of the Baltic states, during their negotiations for an alliance with the Western Powers. The Latvian and Estonian governments, ever suspicious of Soviet intentions, decided to accept a mutual non-aggression pact with Germany. The German–Estonian and German–Latvian Non-aggression pacts were signed in Berlin on 7 June 1939 by Latvian foreign minister Vilhelms Munters and Joachim von Ribbentrop. On the next day Adolf Hitler received the Estonian and Latvian envoys, and in course of these interviews stressed maintaining and strengthening commercial links between Germany and Baltic states. Ratifications of the German-Latvian pact were exchanged in Berlin on 24 July 1939 and it became effective on the same day. It was registered in League of Nations Treaty Series on 24 August 1939.League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. 198, pp. 106-109.
German–Soviet non-aggression pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, signed 23 August 1939 contained secret protocols to split up territories between Germany and the Soviet Union. According to these protocols, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Bessarabia were within the Soviet sphere of interest, and Poland and Lithuania fell into the German sphere of interest. The Soviet Union did not officially admit the existence of these protocols until, under pressure from the Baltic SSRs, on 24 December 1989, the Congress of the USSR People's Deputies officially recognized the secret deals and condemned them as illegal and invalid from their inception.Jerzy W. Borejsza, Klaus Ziemer, Magdalena Hułas. Totalitarian and Authoritarian Regimes in Europe. Berghahn Books, 2006. Page 521.
Invasion of Poland
Nazi Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939.Per Hitler's request, the Soviets transmitted coded messages to support the invading German airforce. France and Britain, which were obligated by treaty to protect Poland, responded with notes of protest requesting the Germans withdraw. Following French-British indecision, Britain acted alone moving forward with a two-hour ultimatum at 9:00 a.m. on 3 September, which France was then forced to follow, issuing its own ultimatum. Nevertheless, despite declarations that a state of war now existed with Germany, the inter-Allied military conferences of 4-6 September determined there was no possibility of supporting an eastern front in Poland. France subsequently requested Britain not bomb Germany, fearing military retaliation against the French populace. It was determined to do nothing, so as to not provoke a transfer of German forces to the western front. Chamberlain declared on 12 September "There is no hurry as time is on our side".Karski, pages 373–392; Chamberlain quote confirmed in two original sources cited in Karski. The abandonment of Poland was complete.
Stalin then moved forward with his part of the Pact, ordering the Red Army on 17 September to cross the Soviet-Polish frontier under the claimed necessity to protect the Belarusians and Ukrainians in the territory of Poland, which Soviets argued "ceased to exist" in the wake of German successes.Moscow dispatched a telegram of congratulations to Berlin on the premature news that Warsaw had fallen to the Nazis. Karski, Jan. The Great Powers and Poland 1919–1945. 1985. University Press of America. Lanham, MD. Stalin then suggested a "trade" to Hitler to solve the "Baltic problem".These Names Accuse. 1982. Stockholm. "Having learned that Germany after the defeat of the Polish army planned to create the State of Little Poland, Stalin suggested the exchange of Lithuania for two Polish voyevodstva (provinces) with the view of immediately 'solving the Baltic problem' with Hitler's consent. Thus, the second secret protocol, which was signed on 28 September in Moscow, came into being." On 28 September 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union having partitioned Poland signed a border agreement, including a second secret protocol, handing Lithuania to Stalin in exchange for two Polish provinces. Shortly thereafter, on 3 October 1939, the German ambassador to the Soviet Union, Friedrich Werner von der Schulenburg, had also suggested to Molotov that various changes in the borders of the Lithuanian territory wait until the "Soviet Union incorporates Lithuania, an idea on which, I believe, the arrangement concerning Lithuania was originally based".Telegram transmitted 3 October 1939. Documents presented to U.N. General Assembly, September 1948 Subsequently, the Soviet Union further agreed to compensate Nazi Germany 7,500,000 gold dollars (or 31,500,000 Reichsmarks) for the Reich renouncing its "claims" on the Lithuanian territory it was to originally possess based on the September 28th agreement.Secret Protocol, signed Moscow, 10 January 1941 by Schulenburg and Molotov. Documents presented to U.N. General Assembly, September 1948
The Soviet Union now occupied just over half of all Polish territory, and the Allied powers had demonstrated themselves incapable of military intervention on the Eastern front. There were no impediments remaining to Stalin, in concert with Hitler, achieving his aims in the Baltics.
Baltic–Soviet relations in autumn 1939
On 24 September 1939, warships of the Red Navy appeared off Latvia's northern neighbour, Estonian ports, Soviet bombers began a threatening patrol over Tallinn and the nearby countryside.Moscow's Week at Time on Monday 9 October 1939 USSR then violated the air space of all three Baltic states, flying massive intelligence gathering operations on 25 September. Moscow demanded that Baltic countries allow the USSR to establish military bases and station troops on their soil for the duration of the European war.The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J. Smith, Page 24,
During talks in Moscow, on 2 October 1939, Stalin told Vilhelms Munters, the Latvian foreign minister: "I tell you frankly, a division of spheres of interest has already taken place. As far as Germany is concerned we could occupy you."latvians.com: The Story of Latvia: The Tragedy of 1940 The Baltics took this threat seriously.
The government of Estonia accepted the ultimatum signing the corresponding agreement on 28 September 1939; Latvia following on 5 October 1939; and Lithuania shortly thereafter, on 10 October 1939. In Latvia's case it was signed by Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vilhelms Munters and Soviet Commissar of Foreign Affairs Vyacheslav Molotov. Ratifications were exchanged in Riga on 11 October 1939, and the treaty became effective on the same day. It was registered in League of Nations Treaty Series on 6 November 1939.League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. 198, pp. 382-387. Articles of the treaty were: Article 1 provided for military cooperation between the parties in case of an attack by a third party. Article 2 obliged the Soviet government to assist the Latvian government in providing armaments. Article 3 permitted the Soviet government to establish military and naval bases on Latvian territory. Article 4 obliged the Soviet and Latvian governments not to engage in military alliances against the other party. Article 5 stipulated that the political and economic systems and the sovereignty of both parties shall not be affected by the treaty. Article 6 dealt with ratification, and stipulated that the treaty shall remain in force for ten years, with an option to extend it for further ten years.
As Latvian National Foundation says the agreement called for Latvia to: lend bases to the Soviet Union at Liepāja, Ventspils, and Pitrags until 1949; build special airfields for Soviet requirements; and grant the stationing of Soviet military garrisons totalling 30,000 troops.These Names Accuse: Historical Introduction, Part 2