Analysis: Moscow Declaration Regarding the Postwar Period
The Moscow Declaration, issued in October 1943 during a pivotal conference among the Allied nations—namely the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China—aimed to address key issues related to World War II and its aftermath. This declaration emerged as the Allies were united in their goal to defeat the Axis powers, particularly Nazi Germany, while grappling with the complexities of postwar governance and the restoration of democracy in liberated nations. A significant aspect of the declaration was its commitment to the complete eradication of fascism in Italy, alongside a strategy for rehabilitating the country following its surrender.
Additionally, the declaration reaffirmed Austria's liberation from German control, nullifying its 1938 annexation by Germany and recognizing the need for the Austrian people to establish an independent government. Importantly, the Moscow Declaration also addressed the accountability for wartime atrocities, stating that German perpetrators of crimes against humanity would face judgment by the nations they had wronged. This historical document not only represented a collaborative effort among the Allies but also laid the groundwork for the postwar order in Europe, reflecting the complexities of international relations during a time of global conflict.
Analysis: Moscow Declaration Regarding the Postwar Period
Date: October 1943
Author: Governments of the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and China
Genre: government document
Summary Overview
From 1939 to 1945, World War II engulfed much of the Northern Hemisphere. The Allied forces—including the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union—fought in Europe to defeat the Axis powers of Germany, Italy, and Japan. German and Italy formed an alliance to disrupt the balance of power across Europe, but many Italians disliked Prime Minister Benito Mussolini's association with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. By 1943, Mussolini was ousted from his position. His replacement, General Pietro Badoglio, reached an armistice with the Allies, and Italy officially switched sides. The United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China issued the Moscow Declaration to establish their intention to completely defeat Germany in the war. The declaration also outlined both an agreement regarding how to restore order and democracy to Italy following its surrender to the Allies and how to treat German criminals who committed atrocities on behalf of the Nazi Party.
Defining Moment
Between 1937 and 1945, nearly the entire Northern Hemisphere was involved in World War II: the Japanese invasion of China on July 7, 1937, launched the war in the Pacific theater, while Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, launched the European war. The Allies included most of the countries of Western Europe, primarily led by the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union. The Axis included many of the countries in central and southeastern Europe, led by Germany, Italy, and Japan.
On November 1, 1936, Germany and Italy formally initiated a “treaty of friendship.” At the time, Germany was controlled by the Nazi Party and Adolf Hitler, while Italy was controlled by the Fascist Party and Benito Mussolini. Over the next several years, the two nations signed several cooperation treaties with each other, and with Imperial Japan. These included the Anti-Comintern Pact to neutralize the perceived threat of communism from the Soviet Union, the Pact of Steel to formalize the Italian-German alliance with military provisions, and the 1940 Tripartite Pact, a defensive military alliance of the three countries.
By 1943, however, public support for the war in Italy—and for Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini—was extremely low. When the Allied forces landed on the island of Sicily that year, Italian forces made little effort to fight back. Instead, Mussolini was forced out of his position as prime minister on July 25, 1943. His replacement, General Pietro Badoglio, sought peace and reached an armistice with the Allies within a few weeks. On September 8, 1943, Italy became the first Axis nation to formally surrender to the Allied forces.
In October 1943, leaders from the Allied countries of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China met at the third of four conferences held over the course of the war in Moscow, Russia, the capital of the Soviet Union. Foreign ministers from these nations met to negotiate their cooperative plans for the remainder of the war. They issued the Moscow Declaration to establish their intention to force Germany's surrender, and to formalize a plan for occupying and rehabilitating Italy in the wake of its surrender to the Allies.
Author Biography
The Moscow Declaration was drafted by foreign ministers and other officials from the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China during the 1943 Moscow Conference. The conference was held to improve the American and British relationship with the Soviet Union, and to determine how to reorganize Germany once the Allies forced its surrender. These three nations were united in their desire to stop the Axis powers from taking over Europe and to liberate their fellow Allied nations from Nazi occupation. However, they differed on many other ideological matters, and they struggled to agree on the terms of surrender they would offer to the Axis powers once the war ended. The Moscow Declaration addressed some of these issues and was signed by Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, British foreign secretary Anthony Eden, US secretary of state Cordell Hull, and Chinese ambassador to the Soviet Union Foo Ping-sheung.
Document Analysis
The Moscow Declaration has four parts. The first part, the “Joint Four-Nation Declaration,” was signed by representatives of the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and China. Its objectives include ending the war in Europe, freeing the occupied countries, and maintaining international peace and security with the “least diversion of the world's human and economic resources for armaments.”
The four nations jointly declare that they will work together on behalf of all the Allies to end the war as quickly as possible; pursue the surrender and disarming of the enemy nations; establish a formal and permanent international organization dedicated to maintaining international peace and security; and consult with the international community for joint actions related to international security.
In the second and third parts, the “Declaration Regarding Italy” and the “Declaration on Austria,” three of the four nations (the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union) also declare their mutual agreement on a strategy for occupying and rehabilitating postwar Italy and Austria. Regarding Italy, the signatory nations agree that “Fascism and all its evil influence and configuration shall be completely destroyed” so that Italy can be reestablished under democratic principles. The Americans and the British state that their invasion of Italy (which commenced in September 1943), has been motivated by the goal of ridding Italy of fascism. The three nations agree to return democratic rule to Italy; to remove Fascist and pro-Fascist elements from the government and administration; and to restore freedom of speech, press, public meeting, and religious worship to the Italian people. Ultimately, the three nations agree that the Italian people must retain the right to choose their own (non-Fascist) form of government.
With respect to Austria, the three nations agree that it “shall be liberated from German domination.” The 1938 annexation of Austria by Germany is declared null and void, and the Austrian people shall be free to reestablish their own independent government. However, the declaration includes a reminder of Austria's participation in the war on the side of Hitler and Nazi Germany. It states that Austria “has a responsibility which she cannot evade” that “in the final settlement account will inevitably be taken of her own contribution to her liberation.”
Finally, the three nations issue a “Statement on Atrocities” regarding any war crimes by Germans in German-occupied territories. The signatories observe that a great deal of evidence has accumulated of “atrocities, massacres and cold-blooded mass executions” perpetrated by “Hitlerite” forces, and that as liberating armies advance to expel them, such atrocities are on the rise. The declaration provides that any Germans who have participated in atrocities will be captured, returned to the scene of their crimes, and judged by the people they have wronged. Germans guilty of broader war crimes will be punished by joint decision of the Allied forces.
Glossary
amnesty: a general pardon for offenses, especially political offenses, against a government, often granted before any trial or conviction
hitherto: up to this time; until now
imbrue: to stain
Bibliography and Additional Reading
Atkinson, Rick. The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943–1944. New York: Holt, 2007. Print.
“Axis Alliance in World War II.” Holocaust Encyclopedia. US Holocaust Memorial Museum, 20 June 2014. Web. 5 Jan. 2014.
“Fact File: First Moscow Conference.” BBC. BBC, 2005. Web. 2 Dec 2014.
Paxton, Robert O. The Anatomy of Fascism. New York: Random, 2004. Print.
Wilhelm, Maria de Blasio. The Other Italy: The Italian Resistance in World War II. New York: Norton, 1988. Print.