Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republicsdue form, have agreed on the following provisions:
Article I. The Republic of Latvia and the German Reich shall
in no case resort to war or to any other use of force one against
the other.
Should any action of the kind referred to in paragraph I be
taken by a third Power against one of the Contracting Parties,
the other Contracting Party shall not support such action in any
way.
Article 2. The present Treaty shall be ratified and the instru-
ments of ratification shall be exchanged as soon as possible in
Berlin.
The Treaty shall come into force on the exchange of the
instruments of ratification and shall remain in force for a
period of ten years from that date. Should the Treaty not be
denounced by one of the Contracting Parties at least one year
before the expiry of that period, its validity shall be extended for
a fresh period of ten years. The same shall apply to subsequent
periods.
Nevertheless, the Treaty shall not remain in force longer than
the corresponding Treaty signed this day between Germany and
Estonia. Should the Treaty lapse on these grounds before the
expiry of the period specified in paragraph 2, the Latvian Gov-
ernment and the German Government shall, at the request of
either Party, at once enter into negotiations for the renewal of
the Treaty.
In witness whereof the Plenipotentiaries of both Parties have
signed the present Treaty.
Done in original duplicate at Berlin, in Latvian and German,
this 7th day of June, 1939.
V. MUNTERS.
J. RIBBENTROP.
PROTOCOL OF SIGNATURE.
On the signature, this day, of the Treaty between Latvia and
Germany, the agreement existing between the two Parties on the
following points has been put on record:
The Contracting Party which is not participating in the con-
flict shall not be deemed to be giving support within the mean-
ing of paragraph 2 of Article I of the Treaty if the attitude of
that Party is in harmony with the general rules of neutrality.
Therefore, the fact of a normal exchange of goods and transit of
goods continuing between the Contracting Party not involved
in the conflict and the third Power shall not be regarded as con-
stituting illicit support.
Berlin, June 7th, 1939.
V. MUNTERS.
J. RIBBENTROP.
4.1302 Franco-Turkish Declaration of Mutual
Assistance
Alliance Members:France and Turkey
Signed On:June 23, 1939, in the city of Paris. In force until October
19, 1939.
Alliance Type:Defense Pact (Type I)
Source:British and Foreign State Papers,vol. 143, p. 476.SUMMARY
On June 21, 1939, France ceded the Republic of Hatay to Turkey in
exchange for Turkish assistance in the Anglo-French bloc of nations.
On June 29, the Hatay parliament voted itself out of existence and
approved the transfer of territory to Turkey. This agreement, signed
two days after the cession of Hatay, promised Turkish aid against
aggression in the eastern Mediterranean. Both countries also pledged
cooperation on security for the Balkans. The pact lasted until it was
replaced by a new agreement in October 1939.Description of Terms
France and Turkey declared that they would cooperate and pro-
vide each other all possible aid and assistance in the case of con-
flict in the Mediterranean (Article 3). Both parties recognized
the necessity of establishing security in the Balkans and would
consult as soon as possible regarding methods for arriving at
that goal (Article 6).4.1303 Treaty of Non-Aggression between Ger-
many and the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics
Alliance Members:Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics
Signed On:August 23, 1939, in the city of Moscow. In force until June
22, 1941.
Alliance Type:Non-Aggression Pact (Type II)
Source:The Major International Treaties: 1914–1945,p. 195.SUMMARY
Negotiations between the British and French and the Soviet Union,
begun in earnest by April of 1939, stalled later that year amid mutual
suspicions. The Western alliance had accepted most of the Soviet
terms for participation, including greater Soviet influence in the for-
eign policies of its neighboring states. During the final negotiations for
signing an alliance, between August 12 and August 17, the Soviets
raised the question of Polish territory for the first time. Poland was
refusing to allow Soviet bases on its territory, even after increasing
pressure from the Western alliance, and this was also part of the new
Soviet request. While negotiations with France and Britain stalled, the
Soviets, who had already been negotiating the provisions of an agree-
ment with the Germans, signed this non-aggression pact in the early
hours of August 23. The world war began one week later.
The secret provisions of this non-aggression pact included the division
of Poland and the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states to the north