Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Agreement 1941; Wikimedia Commons
In April 1941 the Soviet Union and Imperial Japan signed a Treaty of Neutrality, which pledged that both countries would remain neutral in the event of a war with a third party.
Russo-Japanese Treaty of Neutrality
Jun 26, 2013
How did this work out in the end? Did Russia fight the Japanese or only the Germans? Fasinating blog!
– Imperial Japan humiliated Russia in the Russo-Japanese War 1905
– After invading Manchuria in establishing the puppet state of Manchukuo in 1932, Japan turned its military interests to Soviet territories
– The Anti-Comintern Pact of 1936 further deteriorated the relationship between Japan and the USSR.
– In 1939, the Russians defeated the Japanese in Mongolia
– In 1941, Japan and the USSR signed a neutrality pact.
– In April 1945 the USSR annulled the neutrality pact and invaded Manchuria
– Had the war continued, the Soviets had plans to invade Hokkaido before the Allies could invade the main island of Kyushu
– In 1946, 56 islands of the Kuril chain, and the southern half of Sakhalin were incorporated into the USSR