德波互不侵犯条约

The German–Polish declaration of non-aggression, also known as the German–Polish non-aggression pact, was an agreement between Nazi Germany and the Second Polish Republic that was signed on 26 January 1934 in Berlin.

Both countries pledged to resolve their problems by bilateral negotiations and to forgo armed conflict for a period of 10 years. The agreement effectively normalised relations between Poland and Germany, which had been strained by border disputes arising from the territorial settlement in the Treaty of Versailles. The declaration marked an end to an economically damaging customs war between the two countries that had taken place over the previous decade.

Background

In 1925, under the Locarno Treaties, it was agreed that France would never send forces into Germany outside of its own occupation zone in the Rhineland and that both Britain and Italy would guarantee the Franco-German border against any attempt to change it from either side. The purpose of the Locarno treaties was to make it impossible for France to occupy the Ruhr, as had happened in 1923.……

Negotiations

A détente began between Poland and Germany in early 1933. That was promoted by Józef Beck making what Hans-Adolf von Moltke interpreted as "a veiled proposal for direct contact with Germany" in April 1933. Hitler encouraged that by stating on 2 May 1933 by saying to Alfred Wysocki that he did not "share the view that questions Poland's right to exist" and then on 17 May in a speech to the Reichstag that he did not believe it to be possible to "make Germans out of Poles". That was followed by a lessening of tensions around Danzig in July 1933, with Piłsudski instructing Beck to explore options for further talks.……

Declaration

Naming

The German foreign ministry insisted that the agreement be called a "declaration". rather than a "pact", which was seen as implying that there was no conflict of interest between the parties. Additionally, the Germans believed that it "might imply recognition of the German-Polish border. Despite this the agreement is still referred to as a "pact" in some documents.

Effect of the declaration

Under the declaration, Poland and Germany agreed to normalise relations. Until then, Germany had withheld normalisation without first settling the question of the German-Polish border.……

Aftermath

International reactions

The British government was generally pleased by the German-Polish declaration and believed that it removed a dangerous threat to peace.

In Czechoslovakia, the agreement angered the political elite. The announcement of the declaration came just four days after discussions between Józef Beck and Czechoslovak Foreign Minister Edvard Beneš, who speaking to Joseph Addison, the British ambassador in Prague, claimed that the agreement was a "stab in the back" and went on to say that it showed that Poland was a "useless country" that deserved another partition.……

German denunciation

German policy changed drastically in late 1938, after the annexation of Sudetenland sealed the fate of Czechoslovakia, and Poland became Hitler's next target.……

Legacy

Historiography

The historical significance of the agreement has been a matter of controversy. The British historian Hugh Seton-Watson, writing in 1945, stated that the 1934 declaration "marked the beginning of German-Polish active cooperation in an aggressive policy in Eastern Europe". Similarly, A. J. P. Taylor, in his 1961 book The Origins of the Second World War, considered that the declaration had removed the possibility of Polish support for France and freed Hitler to take further actions.

Later historians have been less critical of the agreement.……

Russian conspiracy theories

On 1 September 2009, on the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the Second World War, Russia's foreign intelligence agency, the SVR, declassified documents it said were gathered by undercover agents between 1935 and 1945 allegedly showing that Poland had secretly conspired with Germany against the Soviet Union.……