Northern Eurasia 1936: Anti-Comintern Pact

Even more concerning to the Soviets than Japan's occupation of Manchuria (1931), the deeply anti-Communist Adolf Hitler became German Chancellor in 1933 and set about rearming Germany. When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, Stalin supported the incumbent Republicans while Hitler aided their Nationalist rivals. That same year, Germany joined Japan in the Anti-Comintern Pact, a thinly veiled alliance against the Soviet Union.

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Main Events

1932–1933 Soviet famine results in millions of deaths, particularly in Ukraine and Volga region ▲

Soviet famine results in millions of deaths, particularly in Ukraine and Volga region in wikipedia

30 Jan 1933 Chancellor Adolf Hitler ▲

In a coalition agreement between the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP or Nazi party) and the German National People’s Party (DNVP), German President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Nazi leader Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. From here Hitler would move swiftly to consolidate absolute power. in wikipedia

Nov 1933–Apr 1934 Soviet invasion of Xinjiang ▲

Volunteer Soviet troops and White Guards begin intervening in Xinjiang, China, to relieve the siege of Xinjiang’s governor Shen Shicai in Urumqi by the Kuomintang-allied forces of Zhang Peiyuan and Ma Zhongying. When these troops prove unsuccessful, two brigades of about 7,000 Soviet OGPU troops invade, supported by tanks, aircraft, and artillery with mustard gas. Breaking through at Kulja and Chuguchak, they defeat Ma after several weeks battle on the frozen Tutung River outside Urumqi. A further defeat at Dawan Cheng drives Ma south to Kashgar, after which most of the Soviet forces withdraw. in wikipedia

Mar 1936–Jan 1939 Great Purge ▲

Stalin represses all perceived opposition in wikipedia

17 Jul 1936 Spanish Civil War starts ▲

On 17 July 1936 officers of the Spanish Army staged a coup against the ruling left-wing Popular Front. The armed forces immediately assumed control over much of the country, beginning the Spanish Civil War. in wikipedia

25 Nov 1936 Anti-Comintern Pact ▲

In November 1936 the Japanese ambassador to Germany, Kintomo Mushakoji, signed the Agreement against the Communist International, or Anti-Comintern Pact, with Foreign Minister of Germany Joachim von Ribbentrop in Berlin. The treaty coordinated German and Japanese policy to counteract Communist activities, most notably those conducted by the Soviet Union, and was later joined by Italy, Spain, and other authoritarian states. It was ultimately undermined by the German–Soviet non-aggression pact of 1939 and supplanted by the Tripartite Pact of 1940. in wikipedia