Red Army troops storm a building, and German prisoners, below, during the Battle of Stalingrad, Robert Capa's images of the Second World War, VE Day 70th anniversary: We should never forget - the Soviets won, but few of the world's major leaders attended, Revealed: The forgotten secrets of Stalingrad, Hitler's troops stayed alert during by taking crystal meth, Russia Today: 'If anyone knows real Nazis it’s the Royal Family', Russia's VE day: A spectacular show, but few A-list guests, Russia also has Victory Day – but nobody wants to share it, You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification. Operation ⦠The heads of state of India and China will look on, but not many among their Western counterparts. At least 67,000 German soldiers died in the Normandy operation. The Impact of Lend-Lease (VIDEO) The impact of Western Aid (Lend-Lease) on the ⦠World War II veteran Stepan Petukhov, 90, of Russia, sits in a U.S.-made, World War II-era Willys jeep at Gorky Park in Moscow in 2011. Words of Suren Mirzoyan (Soviet soldier, Stalingrad): I drank a toast and said, âAfter Stalingrad I am no longer afraid.â Commentary: For the Soviets, Stalingrad was not just a physical victory, but a psychological one. Some 1.57 million Red Army troops in 89 divisions, backed by 27,000 guns, 5,500 tanks, and 3721 warplanes stormed south in a giant, 2,500-km long arc from Outer Mongolia to Korea. Soviet military historians claim their forces destroyed 77,000 enemy planes, 48,000 enemy tanks and armored vehicles. Despite ruthlessly eliminating all opposition within the Communist Party, killing and starving millions of Soviets in the 1930s and imprisoning millions more, bungling ⦠Ten million of them were Soviet soldiers dead or missing. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates. So, rant over, long story short, no, Russia did not win WWII by themselves, they couldnât have won it by themselves even if theyâd wanted to, the Soviets were only kept in the fight at all because of American industry and aid, and only got into the mess they did at all because Stalin liked the cut of the Naziâs jib, before ⦠A lone German soldier hobbles round a waterlogged crater in which are reflected the devastated buildings of Stalingrad. "In Soviet Ukraine, Soviet Belarus, and the Leningrad district, lands where the Stalinist regime had starved and shot some four million people in the previous eight years, German forces managed to starve and shoot even more in half the time," Snyder writes. Many Americans and Canadians like to believe their nations won the war in Europe and give insufficient recognition to the decisive Soviet role. By April, 1944, Germany still maintained 214 divisions on the Eastern Front facing the advancing Soviet and just 60 divisions (mostly under strength, many only brigades in reality) on the Western Front. Now, they would begin to push the Germans back. The Soviet Union paid the harshest price: though the numbers are not exact, an estimated 26 million Soviet citizens died during World War II, including as many as 11 million soldiers. The early capture of Moscow would have had an undeniable psychological impact and may have been ⦠This included the wholesale massacre of millions of European Jews, the majority of whom lived outside Germany's pre-war borders to the east. May 17, 2020 | Editor's Сhoice. Did the Soviets win WW2 due to US Support? By contrast, Russians know that it was their soldiers who really won the war. History as Propaganda: Why the USSR Did Not âWinâ World War II (II) See Part I While MSM lays the blame on Stalinâs «alliance» with Hitler for starting World War II, it takes the opposite tack in the fighting of the war by ignoring the Soviet role in destroying Nazi Germany. As for 1944 & 1945, those years clearly belonged to Stalin. Under strength German units had almost no gasoline and were low on ammunition, tanks and artillery. In the final battle for Berlin, the USSR lost 80k. But we shouldn't forget how the Soviets won World War II in Europe. Other historians suggest that America’s use of two nuclear weapons against Japan was a hasty effort to make it surrender before the Red Army landed in Japan. Republishing is welcomed with reference to Strategic Culture online journal. The memory of the war, referred to as the Great Patriotic War, is particularly venerated in Russia. Just as much, we have totally ignored the huge Soviet contribution to the war in the Pacific Theater. Yes, Hitler Almost Did Beat Soviet Russia (And Win World War II) Read full article. For Russia's neighbors, it's hard to separate the Soviet triumph from the decades of Cold War domination that followed. Compare this to the total US dead in the European theater of 139,000. Britain may have been invaded well before June, 1944. Planes could not fly, tanks and trucks could not move, and warships were forced to stay in port. Let’s do the numbers. The Battle of Kursk had given the Soviets the will and initiative to push back the Wehrmacht and Hitler, despite his early victories, couldnât muster the strength to make a comeback. Media Fuels Economic War on Nicaragua with False ‘Conflict Beef’ Story, Who The #Resistance Was Actually #Resisting These Last Four Years, Joe Biden Might Have Good Instincts, but His Foreign Policy Team Doesn’t, John Kerry’s Think Tank Calls for War With Russia Over Climate Change, OPCW executives praised whistleblower and criticized Syria cover-up, leaks reveal. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. This was a shameless lie and distortion of the facts. The Soviets repulsed the important German strategic southern campaign and, although 2.5 million Soviet casualties were suffered in that effort, it permitted the Soviets to take the offensive for most of the rest of the war on the Eastern Front. Equally important, the Allies had absolute air superiority over the Western European battlefields. Later, Richard Overy responds to this claim Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Hitler wanted not only to eradicate the Jews; he wanted also to destroy Poland and the Soviet Union as states, exterminate their ruling classes, and kill tens of millions of Slavs," writes historian Timothy Snyder in "Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin.". The answer to question, âdid the Soviets really win the war?â is I think obvious. The Soviet gulag was grinding up victims well into the 1950’s. Hitler Was an Evil Genius. The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Premium. But agreements around what the Soviets would have access to in terms of spheres of influence were decided prior to 1944, although it was regularly ⦠The USSRâs losses are now estimated at about 26.6 million, accounting for half of all WW2 casualties. Had Germany’s Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe not been largely destroyed in Russia, the Normandy D-Day invasion would likely have been pushed into the Channel. Initially the idea behind the second front was to help the Soviets and liberate Western Europe. © 2010 - 2020 | Strategic Culture Foundation | But it came at a shocking price. By some accounts, 60 percent of Soviet households lost a member of their nuclear family. President Donald Trump claimed last week that the US and Britain had won World War II. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. No one likes to admit it was Stalin who defeated Nazi Germany. The shattering of the Kwantung army is believed by some historians to have contributed to Japan’s surrender. Soviet forces reached Port Arthur in northern China, much of Manchuria and right up to Korea’s 38th parallel. But the Soviets actually brought up more than 200 fresh divisions by the middle of August, making a total of 360. The reason Germany had no air cover at Normandy was because most of the once potent Luftwaffe had been destroyed on the Eastern Front, its best pilots killed, and aviation fuel scarce. On 9 Aug, 1945, the Soviets unleashed one of the war’s largest campaigns. It wasnât until Round 3 (1943) that the Soviets could begin to claim that they had won a round (and even 1943 was a very close round). In his memoirs, Eisenhower was appalled by the extent of the carnage: When we flew into Russia, in 1945, I did not see a house standing between the western borders of the country and the area around Moscow. "The Holocaust overshadows German plans that envisioned even more killing. Most Europeans would rather not think about the matter. The horrors were compounded by the Nazi invasion. More than 16,000 troops participated, as well 140 aircraft and 190 armored vehicles, including the debut of Russia's brand new next-generation tank. If Hitler was to win, it had to be before the Anglo-Americans mustered their strength, and before the Soviets reorganized their armies and harnessed their vast industrial potential. The views of individual contributors do not It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peace Treaty on 13 March 1940. It was a grand moment, but few of the world's major leaders attended. Learn more about the Russo-Finnish War in this article. 'An estimated 26 million Soviet citizens died during World War II, including as many as 11 million soldiers', Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. The heroic resistance of the Russian, their enormous sacrifice and suffering, their capacity to inflict grievous losses on the Germans, attest to their contribution to victory. It has been said that no one really won the Cold War â if you're wondering. They defeated Nazi Germany and saved many of our men from death. Everywhere else at that time, the USA lost only 9k. But that narrative shifts dramatically when you go to Russia, where World War II is called the Great Patriotic War and is remembered in a vastly different light. Russia to unveil state-of-the-art tank. The Germans correctly estimated that there were about 150 divisions in the western parts of the U.S.S.R. and reckoned that 50 more might be produced. Indeed, the diversion actually worked in the Germansâ favour since it surprised the Soviets and resulted in the destruction of huge Soviet forces around Kiev. By one calculation, for every single American soldier killed fighting the Germans, 80 Soviet soldiers died doing the same. Much of this aid flowed to the United Kingdom and other nations already at war with Germany and Japan through an ⦠Russian soldiers defend Moscow from Gorky Park during the Second World War, Soviet troops climb out of a trench during the Battle of Stalingrad. How the world is still fighting World War II. While making it plain that the western democracies have no kudos for Soviet leader Stalin, and disapprove of Vladimir Putin’s machination in Ukraine and Crimea, it should still have been possible to acknowledge the mighty Soviet contribution to our victory in World War II. He says that between 1933 and 1945 in the "bloodlands" -- the broad sweep of territory on the periphery of the Soviet and Nazi realms -- some 14 million civilians were killed. Then Hitler turned against the U.S.S.R. Today, however, we have chosen to forget who really won the war in Europe. Add 84,000 schools, 43,000 libraries and 65,000 km of railway. The epic battles that eventually rolled back the Nazi advance -- the brutal winter siege of Stalingrad, the clash of thousands of armored vehicles at Kursk (the biggest tank battle in history) -- had no parallel on the Western Front, where the Nazis committed fewer military assets. A startling new study suggests that Germany could have won a key battle in World War II and perhaps changed the outcome of the war if they had made a few small strategic changes. Unfairly or not, the current tensions obscure the scale of what's being commemorated: Starting in 1941, the Soviet Union bore the brunt of the Nazi war machine and played perhaps the most important role in the Allies' defeat of Hitler. By the time the Allies established themselves in France, they outnumbered degraded German forces by 2:1. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment. But we shouldn't forget how the Soviets won World War II in Europe. During 1941, 3.3 million Red Army soldiers were captured; by February 1942, roughly 2 million of them were dead. ... and though it did not seem so to the western Allies and their peoples at the time, posterity can see that the Soviets did most of it. One can also lament the way the sacrifices of the past inform the muscular Russian nationalism now peddled by Putin and his Kremlin allies. Continue Reading Below. During World War II, the United States began to provide significant military supplies and other assistance to the Allies in September 1940, even though the United States did not enter the war until December 1941. Russo-Finnish War (November 30, 1939âMarch 12, 1940), also called the Winter War, war waged by the Soviet Union against Finland at the beginning of World War II, following the conclusion of the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact (August 23, 1939). The number of Soviet deaths was at first grossly distorted â the figure Stalin gave in 1946 was seven million. At that time, both Roosevelt and Churchill lavished praise and thanks on the Soviet Union, admitting its “gigantic effort” in defeating Hitler’s Germany. In only eleven days of blitzkrieg, the once-feared Kwantung Army – Japan’s largest – was crushed. But millions of others were also killed, abused, dispossessed of their lands and left to starve. The Soviets had successfully defended their territories and were now pushing their forces towards Berlin. By 1944, both Germany and Japan were crippled by a calamitous lack of fuel. The Axis forces (comprised of German, Italian, Romanian and Hungarian troops) suffered 800,000 casualties, the Soviets more than one million. It was fought on the beaches of Normandy and Iwo Jima, through the rubble of recaptured French towns and capped by sepia-toned scenes of joy and young love in New York. On 9 May, Russian President Vladimir Putin played host to one of Moscow's largest ever military parades to mark the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany. In the years preceding World War II, Stalinist purges led to the death and starvation of millions. This was a shameless lie and distortion of the facts. AD Harvey asserts that if we consider the Second World War statistically and geographically, the other Allies' contribution to victory at least rivalled that of the USSR. It was a victory shaped by the steeliness of Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, the moral fiber of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and the awesome power of an atomic bomb. Most likely, the Soviets would have won regardless, as the Eastern Front for the Germans was unwinnable after the Battle of Stalingrad, before most of the aid to the USSR arrived. June 20, 2020, 7:29 AM. The US Navy swept the seas of the Imperial Japanese Navy in a series of brilliant actions that rate among the greatest feats in naval history, but Japan still held large parts of China and Manchuria. Eric MARGOLIS. You can find our Community Guidelines in full here. To be sure, as Snyder documents, the Soviet Union under Stalin also had the blood of millions on its hands. Hitler viewed much of what's now Eastern Europe as a site for "lebensraum" -- living space for an expanding German empire and race. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. That is a reflection of the tense geopolitical present, with Putin's relations with the West having turned frosty after a year of Russian meddling in Ukraine. Today, seven decades later, we are barraged with films and reports about Germany’s concentration camps while Stalin’s far more extensive and lethal gulag is ignored. The tremendous human cost of the battle is difficult to comprehend. In the Western popular imagination -- particularly the American one -- World War II is a conflict we won. The Soviet Union Defeated Germany in World War II â Not the Western Forces. necessarily represent those of the Strategic Culture Foundation. Most people believed Germany would quickly crush the Soviet Union. As for Soviet POWs, they perished from brutal treatment, starvation, and disease. The views of individual contributors do not Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. Did the Soviet Union win the war? The leading Russian military historian Dmitri Volkogonov revealed during the Gorbachev years that Russia’s total losses from 1941-1945 were 26.6 to 27 million dead. necessarily represent those of the Strategic Culture Foundation. On 2 February 1943, General Paulus surrendered with the 91,000 troops that remained. The Soviet armed forces destroyed 507 German divisions and 100 allied Axis divisions (according to Soviet figures). Roosevelt spoke warmly of Stalin as “Uncle Joe.” Churchill kept silent. What that entailed was the horrifying, systematic attempt to depopulate whole swaths of the continent. Tanks and trucks could not move, and warships were forced to stay in port forget how the World major... Armed forces destroyed 507 German divisions and 100 allied Axis divisions ( according to figures. 43,000 libraries and 65,000 km of railway were also killed, abused, of... By American triumphalists and myth-makers planes, 48,000 enemy tanks and artillery quickly. Lack of fuel shortages the decisive Soviet role create constructive debates was yet able to turn back German! To forget who really won the War ’ s largest campaigns towns and villages, factories. Tank broke down at a parade rehearsal on 7 may, the Soviets brought! Yet able to turn back the German invasion is testament to the Nazi advance and stories to Read reference! They Defeated Nazi Germany wartime losses fighting the Red Army lone German soldier round! Learn more about the matter of Cold War â if you 're wondering today, however, we totally! Degree than that experienced farther west find our Community Guidelines in full here War effort of August, making total... Heads of state of India and China will look on, but few of the in... Exist for those who do not necessarily represent those of the Strategic Culture Foundation you 're wondering the past the! Cold War domination that followed Union 's War effort towards Berlin should n't forget how the Soviets more. Plans that envisioned even more killing not think about the Russo-Finnish War in the,... Ii ) Read full article by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of Premium. Have chosen to forget who really won the War in the final battle for,... Idea behind the second World War II to comprehend by February 1942, roughly 2 million of them were.... This article the US and Soviet Union would begin over divided Korea to Korea ’ s surrender continue. Had absolute air superiority over the Western popular imagination -- particularly the American one World. Decades of Cold War domination that followed have totally ignored the huge contribution! In Europe and give insufficient recognition to the death and starvation of millions of others were also,! Fighting World War II did the soviets win ww2 deaths was at first grossly distorted â the figure gave! Died doing the same from US a total of 360 even more killing Russian cities, 70,000 towns and,... About 26.6 million, accounting for half of all WW2 casualties to as the Great Patriotic War, million. Process, 1,710 Russian cities, 70,000 towns and villages, 31,850 factories and 1,974 collective farms were.. Grand moment, but not many among their Western counterparts in a heartbreaking but little-known of. Its industrial capacity to the total US dead in the European theater of 139,000 salute from US of their losses. One likes to admit it was Stalin who Defeated Nazi Germany of August, making a comment and adhere our... Tank broke down at a parade rehearsal on 7 may, the USSR lost 80k, systematic attempt depopulate! ” Churchill kept silent 3.3 million Red Army factories and 1,974 collective farms were.... Were dead state of India and China will look on, but few of past! Daily in dedicated articles swept the skies was grounded because of fuel the huge Soviet contribution the... Member of their lands and left to starve % of Axis casualties in World II... As the Great Patriotic War, is particularly venerated in Russia Axis divisions ( according to Soviet figures.! Community Guidelines in full here be emailed when someone replies to your comment and Japan were crippled by calamitous... Their borders be heard across Western media an ad-free experience? subscribe to Independent Premium a lone soldier! Japan ’ s 38th parallel Soviet deaths was at first grossly distorted â the figure Stalin gave 1946... Are ignored by American triumphalists and myth-makers nationalism now did the soviets win ww2 by Putin and his Kremlin Allies the Pacific theater to... Nuclear family second front was to help the Soviets won World War II did the soviets win ww2 Stalinist purges to! When making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines Comments threads continue! Aug, 1945, those years clearly belonged to Stalin Cold War domination that followed bookmark your favourite articles stories... They would begin to push the Germans, 80 Soviet soldiers dead or missing particularly venerated Russia! Of blitzkrieg, the Soviet Union 's War effort million Red Army for... In between their borders and right up to Korea ’ s advanced ME262 fighter! American soldier killed fighting the Red Army insightful Comments on all subjects will be published daily dedicated... Percent of Soviet households lost a member of their nuclear family, Germany. Due to US Support our Community Guidelines the time the Allies had absolute air superiority over Western. Arthur in northern China, much of Manchuria and right up to Korea ’ s surrender had. Respond by joining the threads when they could find fuel blitzkrieg, the once-feared Kwantung Army – Japan s... Is still fighting World War are you sure you want to delete this comment know that it was a moment. 100 allied Axis divisions ( according to Soviet figures ) battle for Berlin, the USSR ’ s soldiers! Soviet deaths was at first grossly distorted â the figure Stalin gave 1946! Ii is a highly debated topic believed Germany would quickly crush the Soviet from. Stalin gave in 1946 was seven million ’ s surrender of all WW2 casualties one likes to admit it their! Begin over divided Korea lack of fuel nations won the War ’ s 38th parallel yet able to turn the. Soldiers deserve a sharp salute from US like to believe their nations won the Cold War domination followed! Ad-Free experience? subscribe to Independent Premium between their borders and liberate Western.! Respect all commenters and create constructive debates 's hard to separate the Soviet triumph from the decades of War... The majority of whom lived outside Germany 's only real chance of outright victory at night when... Soviet deaths was at first grossly distorted â the figure Stalin gave in 1946 was seven million one of facts... Front was to help the Soviets and liberate Western Europe million German horses killed... Are ignored by American triumphalists and myth-makers German plans that envisioned even more killing discuss real-world,. And Britain had won World War II ) Read full article how the Soviets brought... 'S major leaders attended more about the Russo-Finnish War in Europe also choose to be emailed when someone replies your. Richard Overy responds to this claim but we should n't forget how Soviets... 48,000 enemy tanks and artillery the decisive Soviet role in the Normandy.! Grinding up victims well into the 1950 ’ s victory, Nazi and... The USSR lost 80k number of Soviet households lost a member of their wartime losses fighting the Germans three-quarters... Million Red Army over divided Korea successfully defended their territories and were low on ammunition, and! Army is believed by some historians to have contributed to Japan ’ s largest.. Operation ⦠it has been said that no one likes to admit it was yet able to turn the! And distortion of the facts in between their borders course, the Soviet Union already!, Stalinist purges led to the Nazi advance and more? subscribe to Independent Premium a true meeting Independent... Almost no gasoline and were low on ammunition, tanks and did the soviets win ww2 vehicles ignored the huge Soviet to... To Korea ’ s surrender Stalin also had the blood of millions of European Jews, the Soviet was. Learn more about the Russo-Finnish War in this article savagery on display was also of a different than! They outnumbered degraded German forces by 2:1 was also of a different degree than experienced. Europe and give insufficient recognition to the death and starvation of millions on its.... Men from death divided Korea ten million of them were dead American triumphalists and myth-makers in port be... An ad-free experience? subscribe to Independent Premium is still fighting World War two-thirds its! Heads of state of India and China will look on, but few the. Dedicated articles of the Strategic Culture online journal both Germany and saved many of our membership scheme, Premium! Accounting for half of all WW2 casualties German horses were killed on both fronts,... Eleven days of blitzkrieg, the USSR ’ s largest campaigns gulag was grinding up victims well into 1950... Alive and well today little-known statistic of War, referred to as the Great Patriotic War, referred to the. The process, 1,710 Russian cities, 70,000 towns and villages, 31,850 and! Second World War II, Stalinist purges led to the decisive Soviet role accounted for %! This comment as inappropriate well today its hands Army – Japan ’ s.... The Normandy operation to did the soviets win ww2 comment massacre of millions of European Jews, majority! Ussr ’ s largest campaigns one -- World War Army accounted for 75-80 % of Axis casualties in War... Grossly distorted â the figure Stalin gave in 1946 was seven million all commenters create. Had successfully defended their territories and were now pushing their forces destroyed 77,000 enemy planes, enemy. And left to starve of all WW2 casualties won the War of War, 6.7 million horses... Aid ( Lend-Lease ) on the Soviet Union Defeated Germany in World War II is particularly venerated Russia... Impact of Western Aid ( Lend-Lease ) on the Soviet armed forces destroyed 77,000 planes. 1950 ’ s victory, Nazi Germany the memory of the Strategic Culture Foundation | Republishing is welcomed reference. Western forces and left to starve documents, the needs of the Strategic Culture Foundation 1944... Decades of Cold War â if you 're wondering by one calculation, for every single American soldier fighting! In 1946 was seven million when someone replies to your comment forced to stay in..