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SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 03:20
1917 (Germany & Lenin) - Following the outbreak of the February Revolution in Russia, Lenin who was living in exile in Switzerland is allowed by German authorities to cross Germany en route from Switzerland with his lieutenants to Sweden in a sealed railway car.

Berlin hoped, correctly, that the return of the anti-war socialists to Russia would undermine the Russian war effort, which was continuing under the provisional government. Lenin called for the overthrow of the provisional government by the soviets; he was subsequently condemned as a “German agent” by the government’s leaders. In July, he was forced to flee to Finland, but his call for “peace, land, and bread” met with increasing popular support, and the Bolsheviks won a majority in the Petrograd soviet. In October, Lenin secretly returned to Petrograd, and on November 7, the Bolshevik-led Red Guards deposed the Provisional Government and proclaimed soviet rule.

Lenin became the virtual dictator of the world’s first Marxist state and his government made peace with Germany and removed the second front.

1939 (Hitler & Stalin) - August 23, 1939 Russian and Germany shocked the world by signing a non aggression pact. Hitler gained assurances that Russia will not respond if he attacked Poland and Stalin believed he bought time to build up forces to deal with the eventual German threat. While Hitler invaded from the West, effectively launching the second world war, by secret agreement the Soviet Union would invade from the East and secure an additional "buffer zone" against the German military threat.

1940 (France & German) - Following a stunning defeat France was given the option to "self occupy" part of their country which came to be known as Vichy France in July of 1940. The armistice divided France into occupied and unoccupied zones: northern and western France, including the entire Atlantic coast, were occupied by Germany, and the remaining two-fifths of the country were under the control of the French government with the capital at Vichy under Pétain. Ostensibly, the French government administered the entire territory.

While not required to do so under the terms of the armistice, Vichy collaborated heavily with Germany including the rounding up of Jews in France for deportation to Germany and French divisions of the Waffen SS were established.

1941 (US & Russia) - In June of 1941, despite a non aggression pact, Germany invaded Russia and by October the first Lend Lease aid packages were on their way to Russia from the US. The United States entered the war as a belligerent in late 1941 and thus began coordinating directly with the Soviets, and the British, as allies.

1967 (Russia & Egypt / Syria) - Communist Russia would become supporters of Arab Muslims in the 1950s due to the “Anglo-French debacle at Suez, the Arab-Israeli conflict, and the use of the Soviet rouble.” Later Egypt and Syria developed a defense treaty, in which if one of them declared war on Israel the other would get involved.

In the 1960s there were numerous clashes between the Syrians and Israelis on the Syria-Israel border. In October 1966 Palestinian guerilla operation against Israel intensified. One of the most serious of these incidents occurred on April 7, 1967 when Israel destroyed seven of Syria’s modern Russian MIG planes. Although the Soviets provided the Syrian army with weapons, they made it clear that they wanted to avoid war. After several more Palestinian guerilla operations, Soviet foreign ministry adopted a “two pronged approach”, demanding that Israel stop its aggressive policy toward the Arab countries.

May 13, 1967 the Soviet’s gave the Egyptian President, Gamal Abd al-Nasser an intelligence report that claimed there were Israeli troops gathering on the Syrian border. Although, Nasser knew that the Soviet report was wrong, he perhaps interpreted it to indicate Soviet support of an Egyptian offensive towards Israel. On May 15, Nasser sent the Egyptian army to Sinai and on May 18, 1967 Nasser requested that the U.N. Emergency Force (UNEF) withdraw from Egypt. Furthermore, on May 22 he closed the Tiran straits to Israeli ships.

The Israeli's interpreted the closing of the straits of Tiran as an act of war, and attacked Egypt on June 5, 1967, destroying hundreds of airplanes. Russia reacted to Israel’s offensive in two ways. Firstly it severed diplomatic relations with Israel and threatened sanctions if fighting with Syria did not cease immediately. Secondly, it told the White House that unless Israel stopped military operations, the Soviet Union would get involved. In the following six days Israel achieved massive victories, until the war ended on June 10, 1967 with a cease-fire.

1979 (United States & Afghanistan) - Following the Soviet invasion in December of 1979 The US soon began a program of support and later assistance for Afghan "freedom fighters" in an effort to undermine the Soviet Union and as payback for their support of Vietnam during that conflict.

In the mid-1980s, the Afghan resistance movement, assisted by the United States, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Egypt, the People's Republic of China and others, contributed to Moscow's high military costs and strained international relations. The U.S. viewed the conflict in Afghanistan as an integral Cold War struggle, and the CIA provided assistance to anti-Soviet forces through the Pakistani intelligence services, in a program called Operation Cyclone.

As well as money, Muslim countries provided thousands of volunteer fighters known as "Afghan Arabs", who wished to wage jihad against the atheist communists. Notable among them was a young Saudi named Osama bin Laden, whose Arab group eventually evolved into al-Qaeda.

Whether the introduction of the personal, portable, infrared-homing surface-to-air "Stinger" missile in September 1986 was a turning point in the war is disputed. Many Western military analysts credit the Stinger with a kill ratio of about 70% and with responsibility for most of the over 350 Soviet or Afghan government aircraft and helicopters downed in the last two years of the war. Some military analysts considered it a "game changer" coined the term "Stinger effect" to describe it. According to US Congressman Charlie Wilson who was instrumental in funding the Stingers for the Mujahideen, before the Stinger the Mujahideen never won a set piece battle with the Soviets but after it was introduced, the Mujahideen never again lost one.

It didn't seem to matte that the primary benefactor was "The Great Satan."

And in smaller theaters of the Cold War, radical Islamic terrorists groups like Black September, the PLO and the PFLP would regularly organize and coordinate with communist back terrorists groups like the Red Army Faction and Red Brigades attacking western targets and Israeli targets in joint operations.

Slater
09-26-16, 08:56
There was a somewhat similar situation in the Pacific after VJ Day:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Surrendered_Personnel

MountainRaven
09-26-16, 11:42
1939 (Hitler & Stalin) - August 23, 1939 Russian and Germany shocked the world by signing a non aggression pact. Hitler gained assurances that Russia will not respond if he attacked Poland and Stalin believed he bought time to build up forces to deal with the eventual German threat. While Hitler invaded from the West, effectively launching the second world war, by secret agreement the Soviet Union would invade from the East and secure an additional "buffer zone" against the German military threat.

This is partially incorrect: Hitler's non-aggression pact was predicated on Stalin responding to Hitler's invasion of Poland... By invading Poland.

It seems that history has focused so much on Germany's invasion of Poland that people seem to forget that Hitler and Stalin were allies and that the Soviet Union also invaded Poland.

ABNAK
09-26-16, 12:17
There was a somewhat similar situation in the Pacific after VJ Day:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Surrendered_Personnel

Wow! Did not know about that. Learn something new every day. One of those interesting history tidbits.

Averageman
09-26-16, 12:44
So kind of like Obama and Ryan?

SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 14:00
This is partially incorrect: Hitler's non-aggression pact was predicated on Stalin responding to Hitler's invasion of Poland... By invading Poland.

It seems that history has focused so much on Germany's invasion of Poland that people seem to forget that Hitler and Stalin were allies and that the Soviet Union also invaded Poland.

Read it again, it's exactly what I said.


by secret agreement the Soviet Union would invade from the East and secure an additional "buffer zone" against the German military threat.

SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 14:03
There was a somewhat similar situation in the Pacific after VJ Day:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Surrendered_Personnel

Yeah, I knew about that one as well. The French became very popular when they used former Japanese prisoners to try and reclaim Indochina (Vietnam) some of whom were released from prison camps in Indochina and then armed.

MountainRaven
09-26-16, 14:04
Read it again, it's exactly what I said.

Blah, shouldn't probably post shit when I've gotten four hours of sleep.

SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 15:54
Blah, shouldn't probably post shit when I've gotten four hours of sleep.

No worries. I've done it.

lowprone
09-26-16, 16:20
1939 (Hitler & Stalin) - August 23, 1939 Russian and Germany shocked the world by signing a non aggression pact. Hitler gained assurances that Russia will not respond if he attacked Poland and Stalin believed he bought time to build up forces to deal with the eventual German threat. While Hitler invaded from the West, effectively launching the second world war, by secret agreement the Soviet Union would invade from the East and secure an additional "buffer zone" against the German military threat.

And just to make sure the Poles would never again be a threat to the Russian's and that Poland would evolve into a good little
buffer state for the Soviet Union, the Reds gathered practically the entire Polish Officer Corps, transported them to the Katyn
Forest and murdered them all and buried them in mass graves, then years later accused the Nazi's of their crime.

SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 17:09
And just to make sure the Poles would never again be a threat to the Russian's and that Poland would evolve into a good little
buffer state for the Soviet Union, the Reds gathered practically the entire Polish Officer Corps, transported them to the Katyn
Forest and murdered them all and buried them in mass graves, then years later accused the Nazi's of their crime.

Even better, and I'm sure you know this, the Germans discovered the graves when they invaded Eastern Poland (then occupied by Russia) and released details on film regarding the Russian "atrocities." FDR and Churchill refused to believe the account and insisted it must be nazi propaganda and suggested the Germans were actually the murderers.

It really wouldn't be until the fall of the Soviet Union and resulting declassified files that the true facts of the incident became known. In one of the largest ironies of the 20 century, France and England went to war because Germany invaded and occupied Poland but we concluded that war with the Russian occupation of Poland after they "liberated" it from Germany.

ABNAK
09-26-16, 20:09
Yeah, I knew about that one as well. The French became very popular when they used former Japanese prisoners to try and reclaim Indochina (Vietnam) some of whom were released from prison camps in Indochina and then armed.

Yeah, I could see how that might popularity might happen.......:rolleyes:

I consider myself a history buff (not needing to consult Google mind you) but did not know about this "situation". It would be like ex-Nazi's being used to fight against communism in Eastern Europe right after WWII.

SteyrAUG
09-26-16, 21:33
Yeah, I could see how that might popularity might happen.......:rolleyes:

I consider myself a history buff (not needing to consult Google mind you) but did not know about this "situation". It would be like ex-Nazi's being used to fight against communism in Eastern Europe right after WWII.

The amount of "Wow...really?!?" stuff associated with the French war in Indochina is staggering. After the defeat at Dien Bin Phu troops ships full of sick and wounded were not allowed to unload when they arrived home. The French government didn't want anyone seeing how many casualties were inflicted. As a result hundreds of French troops died on ships in French ports rather than being evacuated to hospitals that might save them.

To think that our entire Vietnam experience might have been avoided if France decided to let a former colony have their independence following World War II. Meanwhile the US is often criticized for using Nazi scientists for our space program. Of course the deal we cut with the Japanese regarding Unit 731 isn't any more noble than letting Japanese POWs out of a cell to help reclaim a colony. Probably our most reprehensible moment following WWII.

Moose-Knuckle
09-27-16, 02:58
In one of the largest ironies of the 20 century, France and England went to war because Germany invaded and occupied Poland but we concluded that war with the Russian occupation of Poland after they "liberated" it from Germany.

One of the many reasons why Patton didn't want the US to stop until they got to Moscow.