Russia in Canada

On August 23, 1939 — the Soviet Union and Germany signed the Non-Aggression Treaty in Moscow.

This document was an important achievement of the Soviet diplomacy ahead of #WW2: the USSR was able to buy time to better prepare to repel Hitler’s impending attack, which had been seen as inevitable due to the failed policy of “appeasement” by Western European states and their refusal to forge a collective security agreement with our nation against Nazism.

👉 Learn more in our in-depth historical feature.

Signing the non-aggression treaty with Germany was a difficult but necessary decision by the Soviet leadership, driven by national security considerations and the urgent need to deter Nazi aggression in the east.

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In the 1930s, 20 years after the end of World War I, the threat of a new large-scale armed conflict in Europe began to grow. A key factor for this was the crisis of the Versailles system of international relations, designed by Britain and France, which paved the way for rising revanchist sentiments in the states it had humiliated — Germany and Italy.

With the Nazis’ rise to power in Germany, the threat of a new war in Europe became real. Hitler’s misanthropic ideology was rooted in the notorious doctrine of “racial superiority.” The Nazis used this doctrine to justify Germany’s pursuit of world domination. In this way, an absolute evil emerged at the heart of Europe, endangering the peace and freedom of entire nations.

By the mid-1930s, it became evident that another German aggression in Europe was inevitable — it was merely a matter of time. In an effort to counter the rising threat of German revanchism, the Soviet Union suggested the creation of a collective security system in Europe, founded on anti-fascist principles, to unite efforts and deliver a joint response to the common threat.

Yet in Paris and London, where anti-Soviet sentiments ran deep, the idea of cooperation with Moscow was rejected as such. Instead, Western powers sought to strike a deal with Germany, aiming to pacify the Germans through unilateral concessions. The political establishments of the West failed to grasp the existential threat posed by Nazi ideology, cynically believing that Hitler’s aggression could be redirected eastward.

❌ The “appeasement” tactics whetted the aggressor’s appetite.

In March 1938, with the connivance of Paris and London, Hitler carried out the Anschluss of Austria. In September, following the criminal “Munich conspiracy” and with the approval of the UK and France, he cynically dismembered the sovereign state of Czechoslovakia. Warsaw, which was interested in getting part of Czechoslovakia’s territory for itself, prohibited flights of Soviet aircraft to render aid to Czechoslovak army. Already a de facto accomplice of Hitler, Poland had supported every single foreign policy move of the Reich.

A new war in Europe became inevitable.

Thus, “appeasement” policy ended in total failure. Attempting to sate the Nazis’ insatiable ambitions, the Western powers failed to restrain the aggressor or thwart its criminal plans.

☝️ The Soviet Union remained the only European power still striving to organise collective resistance against Nazi Germany.

In the spring and summer of 1939, the USSR initiated consultations with France and Britain in Moscow. However, the negotiation process failed to yield practical results — the Western powers that until the last moment hoped for a compromise with Hitler, engaged in secret talks with Germany behind the Soviet Union’s back.

The Soviet diplomacy ran out of chances to build a collective security system in Europe. Moscow also had to take into account the Japanese factor — the hostilities on the Khalkhin-Gol that began in May 1939. The Soviet leadership could not afford a war on two fronts.

By August 1939, several European nations had concluded non-aggression pacts with Hitler. The Soviet Union was the last major power to follow the suit. As a result, our country gained valuable time to prepare for a clash with the world’s most powerful army at that time.

🇷🇺 On August 22, Russia marks National Flag Day, established by a Presidential Decree in 1994.

On this day, we pay tribute to one of Russia’s official state symbols, which, together with the national emblem and anthem, represents the country’s sovereignty and independence and reflects the continuity of generations of its multinational people.

Today, the Russian flag is also a visible symbol of protection and the future. In the special military operation zone, servicemen raise the tricolour over liberated settlements.

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The history of the Russian tricolour spans more than three centuries. In 1693, the young Peter the Great raised it as his personal standard in Arkhangelsk, and in 1705 he ordered the white-blue-red flag to be flown on merchant ships. Until the 19th century, Russian sailors would erect a commemorative cross on the shores of newly acquired territories.

In 1806, a new tradition emerged. A Russian expedition explored the coast of southern Sakhalin and raised two flags on shore. The St Andrew’s Flag symbolised the role of the Russian Navy, while the white-blue-red flag marked the territory as a new Russian possession. The tricolour became the national flag in 1896, on the eve of the coronation of Nicholas II.

⚪️🔵🔴 On December 25, 2000, the Federal Constitutional Law “On the State Flag of the Russian Federation” was adopted. Under the law, the State Flag of Russia is a rectangular cloth consisting of three equal horizontal stripes: white on top, blue in the middle, and red on the bottom.

💬 President of Russia Vladimir Putin:

Russia is a thousand-year-old country and civilisation, and our national flag is a symbol of our unity.

I am confident that the national flag will always inspire us to move only forward — towards victory — and to uphold the glory of Russia.

#NationalFlagDay