When and where was the Yalta Conference held?
The Yalta Conference was held from the 4th to the 11th of February 1945, near the town of Yalta in Crimea, Soviet Union. The meetings took place across three palaces: Livadia, Yusupov, and Vorontsov.
Questions about Yalta Conference
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who attended the Yalta Conference?
The three heads of government who attended were President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the United States, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of the United Kingdom, and General Secretary Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union. French leader Charles de Gaulle was not invited, a slight he attributed partly to Roosevelt's longstanding personal antagonism toward him.
What did the Yalta Conference agree about Poland?
The conference agreed that Poland's eastern border would follow the Curzon Line, with Poland compensated by extending its western border into German territory. Stalin pledged free elections in Poland, though the final agreement gave predominance to the Soviet-backed Lublin provisional government. Those promised elections, held on the 16th of January 1947, resulted in Poland becoming a communist state by 1949.
What secret deal did Roosevelt and Stalin make about the Pacific War at Yalta?
Roosevelt secured Stalin's pledge to enter the war against Japan within three months of Germany's surrender. In exchange, the Soviets were to receive South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands from Japan, along with recognition of Soviet interests in the Chinese Eastern Railway and Port Arthur, and American recognition of Mongolian independence from China.
Why was the Yalta Conference controversial after World War II?
The conference became controversial because Stalin did not honor his promise of free elections in Poland and moved to install Soviet-controlled governments across Eastern Europe. By March 1945, Roosevelt's own ambassador Averell Harriman was cabling that the Soviet program amounted to the establishment of totalitarianism. In American politics, the agreement was criticized across party lines, particularly by Republicans and Americans with ties to Eastern Europe.
What was Operation Unthinkable and how did it relate to the Yalta Conference?
Operation Unthinkable was a contingency military plan commissioned by Churchill in early 1945 for a potential war against the Soviet Union to secure what he described as a square deal for Poland. A report delivered on the 22nd of May 1945 concluded that the operation's odds of success were unfavorable, citing risks including a possible Soviet-Japanese alliance and threats to Iran and Iraq. The plan was abandoned.