Vyacheslav Molotov Вячесла́в Мо́лотов
Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars
In office December 19, 1930 – May 6, 1941
Preceded by	Alexei Rykov
Succeeded by	Joseph Stalin
People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs
In office May 3, 1939 – June 1, 1956
Preceded by	Maxim Litvinov
Succeeded by	Dmitri Shepilov
Born	March 9, 1890(1890-03-09) Kukarka, Russia
Died	November 8, 1986 (aged 96) Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union
Nationality	Russian / Soviet

Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov (Russian: Вячесла́в Миха́йлович Мо́лотов, Vjačeslav Michajlovič Molotov; March 9 [O.S. February 25] 1890 – November 8, 1986), Soviet politician and diplomat, was a leading figure in the Soviet government from the 1920s, when he rose to power as a protégé of Joseph Stalin, to 1957, when he was dismissed from Presidium (Politburo) of the Central Committee by Nikita Khrushchev. He was the principal Soviet signatory of the Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact of 1939 (also known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact) and the Molotov cocktail was named after him. Image File history File links Molotov. ... Premier of the Soviet Union is the commonly used English term for the offices of Chairman of the Council of Peoples Commissars of the USSR (Председатель Совета Народных Комиссаров СССР; Predsedatel Soveta Narodnykh Komissarov SSSR) (1923-1946) and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR (Председатель Совета Министров СССР; Predsedatel Soveta Ministrov SSSR) (1946-1991), who... is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 126th day of the year (127th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1941 (disambiguation). ... Alexei Ivanovich Rykov (Russian: Алексей Иванович Рыков, Aleksej Ivanovič Rykov; February 25 [O.S. February 13] 1881 – March 15, 1938) was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and Soviet politician. ... Josef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili (Georgian: , Ioseb Besarionis Dze Jughashvili; Russian: , Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili) (December 18 [O.S. December 6] 1878[1] – March 5, 1953), better known by his adopted name, Joseph Stalin (alternatively transliterated Josef Stalin), was General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Unions Central Committee from... This page lists foreign ministers of Russian Empire, Soviet Union, and Russian Federation: // Heads of Posolsky Prikaz, 1549-1699 Ivan Viskovatyi 1549-70 Brothers Vasily and Andrey Shchelkalov 1570-1601 Ivan Gramotin 1605-06, 1610-12, 1618-26, 1634-35 Pyotr Tretyakov 1608-10, 1613-18 Almaz Ivanov 1635-67... is the 123rd day of the year (124th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 152nd day of the year (153rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... A car from 1956 Year 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Maxim Litvinov Maxim Maksimovich Litvinov (ru: Макси́м Макси́мович Литви́нов) (July 17, 1876–December 31, 1951) was a Russian revolutionary and prominent Soviet diplomat. ... Dmitri Shepilov Dmitri Trofimovich Shepilov (Russian: Дмитрий Трофимович Шепилов) (23 October 1905 (Old Style, Askhabad — 8 August 1995, Moscow) was a Soviet politician and foreign minister who joined the abortive plot to oust Nikita Khruschev from power in 1957. ... is the 68th day of the year (69th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1890 (MDCCCXC) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar). ... Sovetsk (Russian: ) is a town in Kirov Oblast, Russia. ... is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... State motto: Russian: Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! Translation: Workers of the world, unite! Capital Moscow Official language Russian Established In the USSR:  - Since  - Until November 7, 1917 December 30, 1922 December 12, 1991 (independence) Area  - Total  - Water (%) Ranked 1st in the USSR 17,075,200 km² 13% Population  - Total   - Density Ranked 1st in the... Molotov can refer to: Vyacheslav Molotov - a Soviet politician and diplomat under Stalin The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, signed by Molotov, also known as the Nazi-Soviet Pact The Molotov Line, a line of fortifications built by the Soviet Union in World War II following the Nazi-Soviet Pact Molotov cocktail... is the 68th day of the year (69th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Old Style redirects here. ... is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1890 (MDCCCXC) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar). ... is the 312th day of the year (313th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... CCCP redirects here. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A politician is an individual who is a formally recognized and active member of a government, or a person who influences the way a society is governed through an understanding of political power and group dynamics. ... This article is about negotiations. ... For most of the history of the Soviet Union, its political system was characterized by divergence between the formal system as expressed in the Constitution of the Soviet Union and actual practice. ... The 1920s they were sexy referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... Josef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili (Georgian: , Ioseb Besarionis Dze Jughashvili; Russian: , Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili) (December 18 [O.S. December 6] 1878[1] – March 5, 1953), better known by his adopted name, Joseph Stalin (alternatively transliterated Josef Stalin), was General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Unions Central Committee from... Year 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar). ... Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (Russian: , Nikita Sergeevič Chruščiov; IPA: , in English, , or , occasionally ); surname more accurately romanized as Khrushchyov[1]; April 17 [O.S. April 5] 1894[2]–September 11, 1971) was the chief director of the Soviet Union after the death of Joseph Stalin. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... A non-aggression pact is an international treaty between two or more states, agreeing to avoid war or armed conflict between them even if they find themselves fighting third countries, or even if one is fighting allies of the other. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Molotov signs the German-Soviet non-aggression pact. ... Molotov cocktail is the generic name for a variety of crude incendiary weapons. ...

Origins and early life

Molotov was born in the village of Kukarka (now Sovietsk in Kirov Oblast) as Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Skryabin (Скря́бин), son of a shop clerk. Contrary to a commonly repeated error, he was not related to the composer Alexander Scriabin ^[1]. He was educated at a secondary school in Kazan, and joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1906. For his political work he took the pseudonym Molotov (from the Russian molot, "hammer"). He was arrested in 1909 and spent two years in exile in Siberia. In 1911 he enrolled at the St Petersburg Polytechnic, and also joined the editorial staff of Pravda, the underground Bolshevik newspaper, of which Joseph Stalin was editor. In 1913 Molotov was again arrested and deported to Irkutsk, but in 1915 he escaped and returned to the capital. Sovetsk (Russian: ) is a town in Kirov Oblast, Russia. ... Kirov Oblast (Russian: ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). ... Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin (Russian: Александр Николаевич Скрябин, Aleksandr Nikolajevič Skriabin; sometimes transliterated as Skryabin or Scriabine (6 January 1872 [O.S. 26 December 1871]—27 April 1915) was a Russian composer and pianist. ... This article is about the capital city of Tatarstan. ... For other uses, see Bolshevik (disambiguation). ... The Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party, or RSDLP (Росси́йская Социа́л-Демократи́ческая Рабо́чая Па́ртия = РСДРП), also known as the Russian Social-Democratic Workers Party and the Russian Social-Democratic Party, was a revolutionary socialist Russian political party formed in 1898 in Minsk to unite the various revolutionary organizations into one party. ... For other uses, see Alias. ... This article is about Siberia as a whole. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and Petrograd (Петрогра́д, 1914–1924), is a city located in Northwestern Russia on the delta of the river Neva at the east end of the Gulf of Finland... For other uses, see Pravda (disambiguation). ... Josef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili (Georgian: , Ioseb Besarionis Dze Jughashvili; Russian: , Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili) (December 18 [O.S. December 6] 1878[1] – March 5, 1953), better known by his adopted name, Joseph Stalin (alternatively transliterated Josef Stalin), was General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Unions Central Committee from... Irkutsk (Russian: ) is one of the largest cities in Siberia and the administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, situated 5,185 kilometers (3,222 mi) by rail from Moscow. ...

Early career

In 1916, Molotov became a member of Bolshevik Party's committee in Petrograd. When the February Revolution broke out in February 1917, he was one of the few Bolsheviks of any standing in the capital. Under his direction Pravda took a turn "left" in opposing the Provisional Government which was formed after the revolution. Consequently, when Stalin returned to the capital, he reversed Molotov's line. However, when the party leader, Vladimir Lenin, arrived, he overruled Stalin. Despite this, Molotov became a protégé and close adherent of Stalin, an alliance to which he owed his later prominence. Molotov became a member of the Military Revolutionary Committee which planned the October Revolution (effectively bringing the Bolsheviks to power). Saint Petersburg  listen (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and Petrograd (Петрогра́д, 1914–1924), is a city located in Northwestern Russia on the delta of the river Neva at the east end of the Gulf of... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Pravda (disambiguation). ... Lenin redirects here. ... An assembly of the Petrograd Soviet, 1917 The Petrograd Soviet, or the Petrograd Soviet of Workers and Soldiers Deputies, was the council set up in Petrograd (Saint Petersburg, Russia) in March 1917 as the representative body of the citys workers. ... For other uses, see October Revolution (disambiguation). ...

In 1918, Molotov was sent to Ukraine to take part in the so-called civil war (Ukrainian-Soviet War of 1918-1921) then breaking out. Since he was not a military man, Molotov took no part in the fighting. In 1920, he became secretary to the Central Committee of the Ukrainian Bolshevik Party. Lenin recalled him to Moscow in 1921, elevating him to full membership in the Central Committee and Orgburo, and putting him in charge of the party secretariat. In 1922, Stalin became General Secretary of the Bolshevik Party with Molotov as the de facto "second" secretary. Under Stalin's patronage, Molotov became a member of the Politburo in 1926. Combatants Local Soviet powers led by Russian SFSR and Red Army Chinese mercenaries White Movement Central Powers (1917-1918): Austria-Hungary Ottoman Empire German Empire Allied Intervention: (1918-1922) Japan Czechoslovakia Greece  United States  Canada Serbia Romania UK  France Foreign volunteers: Polish Italian Local nationalist movements, national states, and decentralist... Central Committee most commonly refers to the central executive unit of a communist party, whether ruling or non-ruling. ... // Existence of Orgburo The Orgburo existed from 1919 to 1952, until the 19th Congress, when the Orgburo was abolished and its functions were transferred to the enlarged Secretariat. ... Politburo is short for Political Bureau. ...

During the power struggles which followed Lenin's death in 1924, Molotov remained a loyal supporter of Stalin against his various rivals: first Leon Trotsky, later Lev Kamenev and Grigory Zinoviev and finally Nikolai Bukharin. He became a leading figure in the "Stalinist centre" of the party, which also included Kliment Voroshilov, Lazar Kaganovich, Sergo Ordzhonikidze and Sergei Kirov. Trotsky and his supporters underestimated Molotov as many others did. Trotsky called him "mediocrity personified", but his outward dullness concealed a sharp mind and great administrative talent. He operated mainly behind the scenes and cultivated an image as a colorless bureaucrat - for example, he was the only Bolshevik leader who always wore a suit and tie (Lenin's attire routine changed in the later years). Leon Trotsky (Russian:  , Lev Davidovich Trotsky, also transliterated Leo, Lyev, Trotskii, Trotski, Trotskij, Trockij and Trotzky) (November 7 [O.S. October 26] 1879 – August 21, 1940), born Lev Davidovich Bronstein (), was a Ukrainian-born Bolshevik revolutionary and Marxist theorist. ... Lev Borisovich Kamenev   (Russian: Лев Борисович Каменев, born Rosenfeld, Розенфельд) (July 18 [O.S. July 6] 1883 – August 25, 1936) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a prominent Soviet politician. ... Grigory Zinoviev Grigory Yevseevich Zinoviev (Григо́рий Евс́еевич Зин́овьев, alternative transliteration Grigorii Ovseyevish Zinoviev, born Ovsei-Gershon Aronovich Radomyslsky (Радомысльский), also known as Hirsch Apfelbaum, (September 23 [O.S. September 11] 1883 - August 25, 1936) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a Soviet Communist politician. ... Nikolai Bukharin Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin (Russian: ), (October 9 [O.S. September 27] 1888 â€“ March 15, 1938) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and intellectual, and later a Soviet politician. ...   (Russian: ), popularly known as Klim Voroshilov (Russian: ) (February 4 [O.S. January 23] 1881 – December 2, 1969) was a Soviet military commander and politician. ... Lazar Kaganovich Lazar Moiseyevich Kaganovich (Russian: ) (November 22, 1893–July 25, 1991) was a Soviet politician and administrator and a close associate of Joseph Stalin. ... Grigoriy Konstantinovich Ordzhonikidze (Russian:Григорий Константинович Орджоникидзе), generally known as Sergo Ordzhonikidze (Серго) (October 12, 1886 - February 18, 1937) was a member of the Politburo, and close friend to Stalin. ... Sergei Mironovich Kirov (Серге́й Миро́нович Ки́ров) (March 15 O.S. = March 27 N.S., 1886 - December 1, 1934) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet communist. ...

Prime minister

When Bukharin's ally, Alexei Rykov, was removed as Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars (the equivalent of a prime minister) in December 1930, Molotov succeeded him. In this post, he oversaw the Stalin regime's greatest social revolution, the collectivisation of agriculture. Molotov carried out Stalin's line of using a combination of force and propaganda to crush peasant resistance to collectivisation, including the deportation of millions of kulaks (peasants with property) to labor camps. A significant fraction of the deportees died. He signed the "Law of Spikelets" and personally led the Extraordinary Commission for Grain Delivery in Ukraine, which seized a reported 4.2 million tonnes of grain from the peasants, during a widespread famine (known in Ukraine as Holodomor). Contemporary historians estimate that between four and six million Ukrainians died, either of starvation or in labor camps, in the move to collectivise farms. Molotov also oversaw the implementation of the first Five-Year Plan for rapid industrialisation. Alexei Ivanovich Rykov (Russian: Алексей Иванович Рыков, Aleksej Ivanovič Rykov; February 25 [O.S. February 13] 1881 – March 15, 1938) was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and Soviet politician. ... Sovnarkom (Russian language СовНарКом, the abbreviation of the phrase Совет Народных Комиссаров, Sovet Narodnykh Komissarov, the Council of Peoples Commissars, sometimes Russian СНК, the SNK), was the name of administrative arm of the Soviet governments until 1946. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The collectivisation campaign in the USSR, 1930s. ... Kulaks (Russian: кула́к, kulak, fist, literally meaning tight-fisted) was a category of rich peasants in later Russian Empire, Soviet Russia and Soviet Union. ... A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are engaged in penal labor. ... Law of Spikelets (закон о колосках) was a common name of the law based on the decree of Central Executive Committee and Sovnarkom of the USSR About protection of the property of state enterprises, kolkhozes and cooperatives, and strengthening of the public (socialist) property (Об охране имущества государственных предприятий, колхозов... <nowiki>Insert non-formatted text hereBold text</nowiki>A famine is a social and economic crisis that is commonly accompanied by widespread malnutrition, starvation, epidemic and increased mortality. ... Child victim of the Holodomor Map of Ukrainian SRR in 1932-1933 (7 Oblast`s (Regions) + Moldavian ASSR) administrative borders given in light grey The Ukrainian famine (1932-1933), or Holodomor (Ukrainian: Голодомор), was one of the largest national catastrophes of the Ukrainian nation in modern history with direct loss of... Five-Year Plan refers to a national economic development plan, lasting five years. ...

The assassination of Sergei Kirov in 1934, an action now believed by some historians to have been ordered by Stalin, triggered a second crisis, the Great Purge. This purge acquired momentum through 1935 and 1936 and culminated in 1937-38 in the Moscow Trials, in which most of the pre-Stalin Bolshevik leaders were convicted on usually fabricated charges of treason and espionage, and millions of other Russians were deported to labor camps. Although the purges were carried out by Stalin's successive police chiefs, Genrikh Yagoda, Nikolai Yezhov and Lavrenty Beria, Molotov was intimately involved in the processes. Stalin frequently required him and other Politburo members to sign the death warrants of prominent purge victims, and Molotov always did so without question. There is no record of Molotov attempting to moderate the course of the purges or even to save individuals, as some other Soviet leaders did. Sergei Mironovich Kirov (Серге́й Миро́нович Ки́ров) (March 15 O.S. = March 27 N.S., 1886 - December 1, 1934) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet communist. ... The Great Purge (Russian: , transliterated Bolshaya chistka) refers collectively to several related campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin during the 1930s, which removed all of his remaining opposition from power. ... The Moscow Trials were a series of trials of political opponents of Joseph Stalin during the Great Purge. ... For other uses, see Treason (disambiguation) or Traitor (disambiguation). ... Spy and Secret agent redirect here. ... Genrikh Yagoda Genrikh Grigorevich Yagoda (Russian: ; born Yenokh (Enoch) Gershonovich Ieguda (Russian: )[1]; 1891 – March 15, 1938) was the head of the NKVD, the Soviet secret police, from 1934 to 1936. ... Nikolai Ivanovich Yezhov (Russian: ; May 1, 1895 – February 4, 1940) was a senior figure in the NKVD (the Soviet secret police) during the period of the Great Purge. ... Lavrenty Beria Lavrentiy Pavlovich Beria (Georgian: ლავრენტი ბერია; Russian: Лаврентий Павлович Берия; (29 March 1899 – 23 December 1953), was a Soviet politician and chief of the Soviet security and police apparatus. ...

Despite the great human cost, the Soviet Union under Molotov's prime ministership made great strides in industrial technology (See command economy). The rise of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany gave the development of a modern armaments industry great urgency, and Molotov and the commissar of industry, Lazar Kaganovich, were primarily responsible for guiding this success. Ultimately, it was this arms industry which enabled the Soviet Union to prevail in World War II. However, the purges of the Red Army leadership, in which Molotov participated, weakened the Soviet Union's defence capacity. This somewhat contributed to the military disasters of 1941 and 1942, which were mostly caused by unreadiness for war. It also led to the dismantling of the peasant class, and its replacement by collectivised agriculture left a legacy of chronic agricultural under-production which the Soviet regime never fully overcame. A planned economy is an economic system in which economic decisions are made by centralized planners, who determine what sorts of goods and services to produce, and how they are to be priced and allocated. ... Hitler redirects here. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Lazar Kaganovich Lazar Moiseyevich Kaganovich (Russian: ) (November 22, 1893–July 25, 1991) was a Soviet politician and administrator and a close associate of Joseph Stalin. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... For other organizations known as the Red Army, see Red Army (disambiguation). ...

Following the purges, Molotov was generally regarded as Stalin's deputy and as his long-term successor, although Molotov was careful not to encourage any such suggestion. The American journalist John Gunther wrote in 1938: "Molotov has a fine forehead, and looks and acts like a French professor of medicine - orderly, precise, pedantic. He is... a man of first-rate intelligence and influence. Molotov is a vegetarian and a teetotaller. Stalin gives him much of the dirty work to do". John Gunther (August 30, 1901 – May 29, 1970) was an American journalist and author whose success came primarily in the 1940s and 1950s with a series of popular sociopolitical works known as the Inside books. ...

Foreign minister

Molotov signs the German-Soviet non-aggression pact; behind him are Ribbentrop and Stalin.

In 1939, following the Munich agreement and Hitler's subsequent invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1938, Stalin decided that Soviet expansion would benefited by signing a treaty with Hitler. In May 1939, Foreign Minister Maxim Litvinov (who was Jewish and therefore not appropriate for these negotiations) was dismissed, and Molotov was appointed to succeed him. Molotov remained at the head of the Sovnarkom until May 1941, when Stalin took over as the official head of the Soviet government. Image File history File links MolotovRibbentropStalin. ... Image File history File links MolotovRibbentropStalin. ... For the annual global security meeting held in Munich, see Munich Conference on Security Policy The Munich Agreement (Czech: ; Slovak: ; German: ) was an agreement regarding the Sudetenland Crisis among the major powers of Europe after a conference held in Munich, Germany in 1938 and signed in the early hours of... This page lists foreign ministers of Russian Empire, Soviet Union, and Russian Federation: // Heads of Posolsky Prikaz, 1549-1699 Ivan Viskovatyi 1549-70 Brothers Vasily and Andrey Shchelkalov 1570-1601 Ivan Gramotin 1605-06, 1610-12, 1618-26, 1634-35 Pyotr Tretyakov 1608-10, 1613-18 Almaz Ivanov 1635-67... Maxim Litvinov Maxim Maksimovich Litvinov (ru: Макси́м Макси́мович Литви́нов) (July 17, 1876–December 31, 1951) was a Russian revolutionary and prominent Soviet diplomat. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ...

At first, Hitler rebuffed Soviet diplomatic hints that Stalin desired a treaty, but in early August, he authorised Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop to begin serious negotiations. A trade agreement was concluded on August 18, and on August 22, Ribbentrop flew to Moscow to conclude a formal non-aggression treaty. Although the treaty is known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Molotov and Ribbentrop acted only as agents for their masters, Stalin and Hitler. The most important part of the agreement was the secret protocol, which provided for the partition of Poland, Finland and the Baltic States between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union and for the Soviet annexation of Bessarabia (then part of Romania, now Moldova). This protocol gave Hitler the green light for his invasion of Poland, which began on September 1. Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (born Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim Ribbentrop) (April 30, 1893 – October 16, 1946) was Foreign Minister of Germany from 1938 until 1945. ... is the 230th day of the year (231st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... Molotov signs the German-Soviet non-aggression pact. ... The three Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. ... 1927 map of Bessarabia from Charles Upson Clarks book Bessarabia (Basarabia in Romanian, Бесарабія in Ukrainian, Бессарабия in Russian, Бесарабия in Bulgarian, Besarabya in Turkish) is a historical term for the geographic entity in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the East and the Prut River on the West. ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Under the terms of the Pact, Stalin was, in effect, given authorisation to occupy and annex Estonia, Latvia and Bessarabia, as well as the part of Poland east of the Curzon Line (an area in which Ukrainians and Byelorussians comprised the majority of the population). He was also given a free hand in relation to Finland. In the Soviet-Finnish War that ensued, a combination of fierce Finnish resistance and Soviet mismanagement resulted in Finland losing parts of its territory, but not its independence. During this conflict, the Finns coined the term Molotov cocktail for a homemade incendiary device to be used against tanks. Germany was authorised to occupy the western two-thirds of Poland (much of which was annexed to Germany), as well as Lithuania, but the Pact was later amended to allocate Lithuania to the Soviet sphere in exchange for a more favourable border in Poland. All these annexations led to massive suffering and loss of life in the countries which were occupied and partitioned by the two dictatorships. 1927 map of Bessarabia from Charles Upson Clarks book Bessarabia (Basarabia in Romanian, Бесарабія in Ukrainian, Бессарабия in Russian, Бесарабия in Bulgarian, Besarabya in Turkish) is a historical term for the geographic entity in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the East and the Prut River on the West. ... The Curzon Line was a demarcation line proposed in 1919 by the British Foreign Secretary, Lord Curzon of Kedleston, as a possible armistice line between Poland, to the west, and Soviet Russia to the east, during the Polish-Soviet War of 1919–20. ... The Winter War (also known as the Russo-Finnish War) broke out when the Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939, three months after the start of World War II. As a consequence, the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations on December 14th. ... Molotov cocktail is the generic name for a variety of crude incendiary weapons. ...

The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact governed Soviet-German relations until June 1941 when Hitler, having occupied France and neutralised Britain (or so he thought), turned east and attacked the Soviet Union. Following the invasion, Molotov conducted urgent negotiations with Britain and, later, the United States for wartime alliances and traveled to London in 1941 and to Washington in 1942. In 1942, he signed the Anglo-Soviet Treaty of Alliance. He also secured Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill's agreement to create a "second front" in Europe. He accompanied Stalin to the Teheran conference in 1943, the Yalta conference in 1945 and the Potsdam conference, which followed the defeat of Germany. He represented the Soviet Union at the San Francisco Conference, which created the United Nations. Even during the period of wartime alliance, Molotov was known as a tough negotiator and determined defender of Soviet interests. In this he was carrying out Stalin's wishes. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... ... FDR redirects here. ... Churchill redirects here. ... From left to right, Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill The Tehran Conference was the meeting of Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill between November 28 and December 1, 1943 that took place in Tehran, Iran. ... The Big Three at the Yalta Conference, Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin. ... Harry S. Truman and Joseph Stalin meeting at the Potsdam Conference on July 18, 1945. ... Prime Minister Yoshida Shigeru of Japan, gave a speech on Reconciliation and rapport (和解と信頼) in 1951 at San Francisco Peace conference. ... UN and U.N. redirect here. ...

Winston Churchill in his wartime memoirs lists many meetings with Molotov. Acknowledging him as a ruthless and difficult diplomat, Churchill was generous enough to conclude: "In the conduct of foreign affairs, Mazarin; Talleyrand, Metternich, would welcome him to their company, if there be another world to which Bolsheviks allow themselves to go." Churchill redirects here. ... Cardinal Jules Mazarin, French diplomat and statesman Jules Mazarin, born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino; but best known as Cardinal Mazarin (July 14, 1602 – March 9, 1661) served as the chief minister of France from 1642, until his death. ... Charles Maurice de Talleyrand Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (February 2, 1754 - May 17, 1838) was a French diplomat. ... Klemens Wenzel von Metternich Klemens Wenzel Nepomuk Lothar Fürst von Metternich-Winneberg-Beilstein (May 15, 1773 - June 11, 1858) (sometimes rendered in English as Prince Clemens Metternich) was an Austrian politician and statesman and perhaps the most important diplomat of his era. ...

Postwar career

In the postwar period, Molotov's position began to decline. In 1949, he was replaced as Foreign Minister by Andrey Vyshinsky, although retaining his position as Deputy Prime Minister and membership of the Politburo. Following the death of Andrei Zhdanov, who had come to be seen as Stalin's most likely successor, Stalin and Beria began to plan a new purge, which would have removed most of the older party leaders such as Molotov from their positions. New leaders, such as Georgii Malenkov and Nikita Khrushchev, enjoyed Stalin's patronage. Andrey Vyshinsky Andrey Yanuaryevich Vyshinskiy (Андре́й Януа́рьевич Выши́нский) (December 10, 1883 [O.S. November 28]–November 22, 1954), also spelt Vishinsky, Vyshinski, was a Russian and Soviet jurist and later diplomat. ... Andrei Zhdanov Andrei Aleksandrovich Zhdanov (Андре́й Алекса́ндрович Жда́нов) (February 26 [O.S. February 14] 1896–August 31, 1948) was a Soviet politician. ... Georgy Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov (Гео́ргий Максимилиа́нович Маленко́в) (GHYOR-ghee mah-leen-KOF) (January 13 [January 8, Old Style], 1902 - January 14, 1988) was a Soviet politician and Communist Party leader, and a close collaborator of Joseph Stalin. ... Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (Russian: , Nikita Sergeevič Chruščiov; IPA: , in English, , or , occasionally ); surname more accurately romanized as Khrushchyov[1]; April 17 [O.S. April 5] 1894[2]–September 11, 1971) was the chief director of the Soviet Union after the death of Joseph Stalin. ...

A clear sign of Molotov's precarious position was his inability to prevent the arrest of his Jewish wife, Polina Zhemchuzhina, in December 1948 for "treason". She had long been distrusted by Stalin. The couple were reunited by Beria upon the death of Stalin. At the 19th Party Congress in 1952, Molotov was elected to the new, expanded Presidium of the Communist Party but was excluded from the smaller standing committee of the Presidium (although this was not made public). It seems likely that Stalin's death in March 1953 saved Molotov from being purged as part of a "clean out" of the Soviet leadership. Polina Semyonovna Zhemchuzhina (Russian: Полина Семеновна Жемчужина; 1897 - 1970) was the wife of Vyacheslav Molotov. ... Lavrenty Beria Lavrenty Pavlovich Beria (Russian: Лавре́нтий Па́влович Бе́рия) (29 March 1899 - 23 December 1953), Soviet politician and police chief, is remembered chiefly as the executor of Joseph Stalins Great Purge of the 1930s, although in fact he presided only over the closing stages of the Purge. ... The 19th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was held during 5-14 October 1952. ... The Presidium or Praesidium (from Latin praesidium meaning protection or defense so plural presidia or praesidia) is the name for the executive committee of various legislative and organizational bodies. ...

Following Stalin's death, a realignment of the leadership was sought, in the course of which Molotov's position was strengthened. Beria was purged and executed, and Molotov regained the Foreign Ministry under Malenkov as Prime Minister. However, the new Party Secretary, Khrushchev, soon emerged as the real power in the regime. He presided over a gradual domestic liberalisation and a "thaw" in foreign policy, shown by the reconciliation with Tito's government in Yugoslavia (which Stalin had expelled from the communist movement). Molotov, an old-guard Stalinist, seemed increasingly out of place in this new environment, but he represented the Soviet Union with his usual tenacity at the Geneva Conference of 1955 which discussed European security, German reunification and disarmament. Josip Broz Tito (May 7, 1892 - May 4, 1980) was the ruler of Yugoslavia between the end of World War II and his death in 1980. ... Yugoslavia (Jugoslavija in the Latin alphabet, Југославија in Cyrillic; English: South Slavia, or literary The Land of South Slavs) describes three political entities that existed one at a time on the Balkan Peninsula in Europe, during most of the 20th century. ...  --  W  P Talk 00:44, 30 September 2005 (UTC) Categories: Possible copyright violations ...

The events which led to Molotov's downfall began in February 1956 when Khrushchev launched an unexpected denunciation of Stalin at the 20th Congress of the Communist Party. Khrushchev attacked Stalin both over the purges of the 1930s and the defeats of the early years of World War II, which he blamed on Stalin's over-trusting attitude to Hitler and the purges of the Red Army. Since Molotov was most senior of Stalin's collaborators still alive and had played a leading role in the purges, it became obvious that Khrushchev's examination into the past would probably result in Molotov's fall from power. Consequently, he became the leader of the "old guard" in resisting Khrushchev, although whether he actually plotted to overthrow Khrushchev, as was later alleged, is not clear. (Redirected from 20th Party Congress) The 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was held during February 14—February 26, 1956. ...

In June 1956, Molotov was removed as Foreign Minister, and in June 1957 was expelled from the Presidium (Politburo) following a failed attempt to remove Kruschev as First Secretary. Although Molotov's faction initially won a vote in the Presidium 7-4 to remove Kruschev, the latter refused to resign unless a Central Committee plenum decided so. In the plenum, which lasted from 22 to 29 June, Molotov and his faction were defeated. Eventually he was banished as ambassador to Mongolia. In 1960, he was appointed Soviet representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency, which was seen as a partial rehabilitation. However, after the 22nd Party Congress in 1961, during which Khrushchev carried his de-Stalinization campaign to removal of the Stalin's body out of the Lenin's Mausoleum, Molotov was removed from all positions and expelled from the Communist Party. In March 1962, it was announced that Molotov had retired from public life. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for military purposes. ... De-Stalinization and the Khrushchev era For further details, see Nikita Khrushchev After Stalin had died in March 1953, he was succeeded by Nikita Khrushchev as First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Georgi Malenkov as Premier of the Soviet Union. ... Lenins Tomb, with wall of the Kremlin and the former Soviet Parliament building behind An entrance to Lenins Mausoleum Lenins Mausoleum (Russian: ) (Transliteration: Mavzoley Lenina) also known as Lenins Tomb, situated in Red Square in Moscow, is the mausoleum that serves as the final resting place...

In retirement, Molotov remained totally unrepentant about his role during Stalin's period of rule. After the Sino-Soviet split, it was reported that he agreed with the criticisms made by Mao Zedong of the supposed "revisionism" of Khrushchev's policies. According to Roy Medvedev, Stalin's daughter, Svetlana, recalled Molotov and his wife telling her: "Your father was a genius. There's no revolutionary spirit around nowadays, just opportunism everywhere. China's our only hope! Only they have kept alive the revolutionary spirit". In 1976, he said: The Sino-Soviet split was a major diplomatic conflict between the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), beginning in the late 1950s, reaching a peak in 1969 and continuing in various ways until the late 1980s. ... Mao redirects here. ... Chinese poster from the first stage of the Cultural Revolution, reading: Down with the Soviet revisionists in large print, and Crush the dog head of Leonid Brezhnev and Alexey Kosygin at the bottom, 1967 The term revisionism is also used to refer to other concepts. ... Roi Medvedev, (b. ... Svetlana with father Stalin in 1935. ...

"The fact that atomic war may break out, isn't that class struggle? There is no alternative to class struggle. This is a very serious question. The be-all and end-all is not peaceful coexistence. After all, we have been holding on for some time, and under Stalin we held on to the point where the imperialists felt able to demand point-blank: either surrender such and such positions, or it means war. So far the imperialists haven't renounced that".

Molotov was partly rehabilitated during the Leonid Brezhnev years and was allowed to rejoin the Communist Party in 1984 under Konstantin Chernenko. He died at the age of 96 in Moscow in November 1986, only five years before the dissolution of the Soviet Union. At the time of his death he was the last surviving major participant in the events of 1917. He was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow. A collection of interviews with Molotov, Molotov Remembers: Inside Kremlin Politics, was published posthumously by Felix Chuev. At the end of 1989, two years before the final collapse of the Soviet Union, the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union and Mikhail Gorbachev's government formally denounced the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, acknowledging that the annexation of the Baltic States and the partition of Poland had been illegal. Ironically, Molotov is distantly related to Peter Blitstein, a professor of history at Lawrence University. Brezhnev redirects here. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... Grave of Anton Chekhov Novodevichy Cemetery (Новодевичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is the most famous cemetery in Moscow, Russia, situated next to the World Heritage Site, the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the citys third most popular tourist site. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev[1] (Russian: , IPA: ; born 2 March 1931) is a Russian politician. ... Lawrence University, located in Appleton, Wisconsin, is a private undergraduate college founded in 1847. ...

See also

• Soviet-German relations before 1941
• Molotov Plan

Signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk Cooperation between Germany and Soviet Union dates to the aftermath of the First World War. ... Molotov The Molotov Plan was the system created by the Soviet Union in 1947 in order to provide aid to rebuild the countries in Eastern Europe that were politically and economically aligned to the Soviet Union. ...

References

1. ^ Montefiore, The Court of the Red Tsar, pp. 39, 62n.

• Chuev, Felix (ed), Molotov Remembers: Inside Kremlin Politics (1993). Dee Ivan Inc. ISBN 1-56663-027-4
• Raymond H. Anderson, "Vyacheslav M. Molotov Is Dead; Close Associate of Stalin Was 96", The New York Times, 11 November 1986.
• The Associated Press, "200 Attend Molotov Funeral in Private Rites at Cemetery," The New York Times, 13 November 1986.
• Vladislav Zubok and Constantine Pleshakov, Inside the Kremlin's Cold War, 1996, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. ISBN 0-674-45532-0
• Montefiore, Simon Sebag, Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar (2003). ISBN 1-84212-726-8

is the 315th day of the year (316th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ...

External links

• Report by Shkiryatov and Abakumov to Stalin on Molotov's wife
• V.M. Molotov and the Liquidation of Socialism in the USSR
• Annotated bibliography for Vyacheslav Molotov from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues
• The Meaning of the Soviet-German Non-Aggression Pact Molotov speech to the Supreme Soviet on Aug. 31, 1939

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Vyacheslav Molotov

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Vyacheslav Molotov

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