Why did the Soviet Union expand into Eastern Europe?
After the war, Stalin was determined that the USSR would control Eastern Europe. That way, Germany or any other state would not be able to use countries like Hungary or Poland as a staging post to invade. His policy was simple. Each Eastern European state had a Communist government loyal to the USSR.
What was the purpose of the Communist bloc in Eastern Europe?
The Eastern Bloc was formed during the Second World War as a unified force led by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Its initial intention was to fight Nazi Germany.
What did the Soviet expansion lead to?
The expansion built up a time bomb of tension and conflict. The Russian expansion, in my view, started the cold war and was the main cause for tension and conflict; it destroyed the shaky relationship between the USSR and America and made Russia the biggest superpower in the world.
When did Czechoslovakia become communist?
February 1948
Why did the Soviet Union want to expand?
Therefore when World War 2 ended and the Soviets occupied Eastern Europe and their German zone of occupation, Stalin saw this as an opportunity to set up a buffer zone of communist states, protecting the Soviet Union from future attack from the West.
How did the Soviet Union expand communism?
East Germany was part of the Soviet zone of occupation agreed at the Yalta Conference and in 1945 the Soviets set up a communist regime. In the 1945 elections, a communist-led coalition (made up of more than one political party) government was elected. By 1948 the Communist Party was in complete control of the country.
Was Yugoslavia a communist?
While ostensibly a communist state, Yugoslavia broke away from the Soviet sphere of influence in 1948, became a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961, and adopted a more de-centralized and less repressive form of government as compared with other East European communist states during the Cold War.
How was life in communist Yugoslavia?
Generally everyone fought the Serbians, because they were the dominant nation in Yugoslavia, and they wanted others to remain under their control. Life in those times was quite stressful, particularly in small towns that had mixed communities of various religions. Random, and many organised, acts of violence occurred.
What countries did Yugoslavia break up into?
Over the course of just three years, torn by the rise of ethno-nationalism, a series of political conflicts and Greater Serbian expansions, , the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia disintegrated into five successor states: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Slovenia, and the Federal Republic of …
How did Yugoslavia become communist?
All the Communist European Countries had deferred to Stalin and rejected the Marshall Plan aid in 1947. Tito, at first went along and rejected the Marshall plan. However, in 1948 Tito broke decisively with Stalin on other issues, making Yugoslavia an independent communist state.
Why is Yugoslavia no longer a country?
The Breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After his death in 1980, the weakened system of federal government was left unable to cope with rising economic and political challenges.
What was Croatia called before?
Yugoslavia
What religion was Yugoslavia?
Religion is closely identified with nationalism: Croatia and Slovenia in the north and west are Catholic; Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia to the east and south-east are Orthodox (Serbian and Macedonian); and Bosnia Hercegovina in the centre is a mixture of Orthodox (the major- ity), Muslims (next in size, who are …
What religion is in Croatia?
Roman-Catholic