Joseph Stalin

=== 1947–1950: Cold War policy ===
[[File:Mao, Bulganin, Stalin, Ulbricht Tsedenbal.jpeg|thumb|right|225px|Joseph Stalin at his 71st birthday celebration with (left to right) [[Mao Zedong]], [[Nikolai Bulganin]], [[Walter Ulbricht]] and [[Yumjaagiin Tsedenbal]]]]

In the aftermath of the Second World War, the British Empire declined, leaving the U.S. and USSR as the dominant world powers.{{sfn|Service|2004|pp=502–503}} Tensions among these former Allies grew,{{sfn|Service|2004|p=484}} resulting in the [[Cold War]].{{sfn|Service|2004|p=503}} Although Stalin publicly described the British and U.S. governments as aggressive, he thought it unlikely that a war with them would be imminent, believing that several decades of peace was likely.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=487}} He nevertheless secretly intensified Soviet research into nuclear weaponry, intent on creating an [[atom bomb]].{{sfn|Service|2004|p=481}} Still, Stalin foresaw the undesirability of a nuclear conflict, saying in 1949 that "atomic weapons can hardly be used without spelling the end of the world."{{sfn|Gaddis|2005|p=57}} He personally took a keen interest in the development of the weapon.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=508}} In August 1949, the bomb was successfully tested in the [[Semipalatinsk Test Site|deserts outside Semipalatinsk]] in Kazakhstan.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=508|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=293}} Stalin also initiated a new military build-up; the Soviet army was expanded from 2.9&nbsp;million soldiers, as it stood in 1949, to 5.8&nbsp;million by 1953.{{sfn|Khlevniuk|2015|p=297}}

The U.S. began pushing its interests on every [[continent]], acquiring air force bases in Africa and Asia and ensuring pro-U.S. regimes took power across Latin America.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=502}} It launched the [[Marshall Plan]] in June 1947, with which it sought to undermine Soviet [[hegemony]] throughout Eastern Europe. The U.S. also offered financial assistance to countries as part of the Marshall Plan on the condition that they opened their markets to trade, aware that the Soviets would never agree.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=504|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=267}}
The Allies demanded that Stalin withdraw the Red Army from northern Iran. He initially refused, leading to an [[Iran crisis of 1946|international crisis in 1946]], but one year later Stalin finally relented and moved the Soviet troops out.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=504}} Stalin also tried to maximise Soviet influence on the world stage, unsuccessfully pushing for Libya—recently liberated from Italian occupation—to become a Soviet protectorate.<ref name="SergeiMazovTheSovietUnionTheItalianColoniesColdWarHistory2006">{{cite journal |last1=Mazov |first1=Sergei |date=9 August 2006 |title=The USSR and the Former Italian Colonies, 1945–50 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248952254 |journal=[[Cold War History (journal)|Cold War History]] |volume=3 |issue=3 |pages=49–78 |doi=10.1080/14682740312331391618 |s2cid=153413935 |access-date=19 March 2023}}</ref>{{sfn|Service|2004|p=494}} He sent Molotov as his representative to San Francisco to take part in negotiations to form the United Nations, insisting that the Soviets have a place on the [[Security Council]].{{sfn|Service|2004|p=503}} In April 1949, the Western powers established the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] (NATO), an international military alliance of capitalist countries.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=507|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=281}} Within Western countries, Stalin was increasingly portrayed as the "most evil dictator alive" and compared to Hitler.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=551}} According to his daughter, [[Svetlana Alliluyeva]] she "remembered her father saying after [the war]: Together with the Germans we would have been invincible" <ref>{{cite book |last1=Lukacs |first1=John |title=June 1941: Hitler and Stalin |date=2006 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=0300123647 |page=160}}</ref>

In 1948, Stalin edited and rewrote sections of ''[[Falsifiers of History]]'', published as a series of ''Pravda'' articles in February 1948 and then in book form. Written in response to public revelations of the 1939 Soviet alliance with Germany, it focused on blaming the Western powers for the war.{{sfn|Roberts|2002|pp=96–98}} He also erroneously claimed that the initial German advance in the early part of the war, during Operation Barbarossa, was not a result of Soviet military weakness, but rather a deliberate Soviet strategic retreat.{{sfn|Khlevniuk|2015|p=264}} In 1949, celebrations took place to mark Stalin's seventieth birthday (although he was 71 at the time,) at which Stalin attended an event in the [[Bolshoi Theatre]] alongside Marxist–Leninist leaders from across Europe and Asia.{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=296|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2pp=548–549|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3p=290}}

====Eastern Bloc====
[[File:EasternBloc BasicMembersOnly.svg|thumb|The [[Eastern Bloc]] until 1989]]

After the war, Stalin sought to retain Soviet dominance across Eastern Europe while expanding its influence in Asia.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=492}} Cautiously regarding the responses from the Western Allies, Stalin avoided immediately installing Communist Party governments across Eastern Europe, instead initially ensuring that Marxist-Leninists were placed in coalition ministries.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=494}} In contrast to his approach to the Baltic states, he rejected the proposal of merging the new communist states into the Soviet Union, rather recognising them as independent nation-states.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=517}}
He was faced with the problem that there were few Marxists left in Eastern Europe, with most having been killed by the Nazis.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=483}} He demanded that war reparations be paid by Germany and its Axis allies Hungary, Romania, and the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]].{{sfn|Service|2004|p=484}} Aware that these countries had been pushed toward socialism through invasion rather than by proletarian revolution, Stalin referred to them not as "dictatorships of the proletariat" but as "people's democracies", suggesting that in these countries there was a pro-socialist alliance combining the proletariat, peasantry, and lower middle-class.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=518}}

Churchill observed that an "[[Iron Curtain]]" had been drawn across Europe, separating the east from the west.{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=279|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=503}} In September 1947, a meeting of East European communist leaders was held in [[Szklarska Poręba]], Poland, from which was formed [[Cominform]] to co-ordinate the Communist Parties across Eastern Europe and also in France and Italy.{{sfnm |1a1=Conquest |1y=1991 |1p=286 |2a1=Service |2y=2004 |2p=506 |3a1=Khlevniuk |3y=2015 |3p=267}} Stalin did not personally attend the meeting, sending [[Zhdanov]] in his place.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=506}} Various East European communists also visited Stalin in Moscow.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=511}} There, he offered advice on their ideas; for instance, he cautioned against the Yugoslav idea for a [[Balkan Federation]] incorporating Bulgaria and Albania.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=511}} Stalin had a particularly strained relationship with Yugoslav leader [[Josip Broz Tito]] due to the latter's continued calls for a Balkan federation and for Soviet aid for the communist forces in the ongoing [[Greek Civil War]].{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1pp=286–287|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=515}} In March 1948, Stalin launched an anti-Tito campaign, accusing the Yugoslav communists of adventurism and deviating from Marxist–Leninist doctrine.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=515}} At the second Cominform conference, held in Bucharest in June 1948, East European communist leaders all denounced Tito's government, accusing them of being fascists and agents of Western capitalism.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=516}} Stalin ordered several assassination attempts on Tito's life and even contemplated an invasion of Yugoslavia itself.{{sfn|Conquest|1991|p=287}}

Stalin suggested that a unified, but demilitarised, German state be established, hoping that it would either come under Soviet influence or remain neutral.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=507}} When the U.S. and UK remained opposed to this, Stalin sought to force their hand by [[Berlin Blockade|blockading Berlin]] in June 1948.{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=280|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=507|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3p=281}} He gambled that the Western powers would not risk war, but they airlifted supplies into West Berlin until May 1949, when Stalin relented and ended the blockade.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=507|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=281}} In September 1949 the Western powers transformed Western Germany into an independent [[Federal Republic of Germany]]; in response the Soviets formed East Germany into the [[German Democratic Republic]] in October.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=507}} In accordance with their earlier agreements, the Western powers expected Poland to become an independent state with free democratic elections.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=476}} In Poland, the Soviets merged various socialist parties into the [[Polish United Workers' Party]] (PZPR), and [[vote rigging]] was used to ensure that the PZPR secured office.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=515}} The 1947 Hungarian elections were also rigged by Stalin, with the [[Hungarian Working People's Party]] taking control.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=515}} In Czechoslovakia, where the communists did have a level of popular support, they were elected the largest party in 1946.{{sfn|Service|2004|pp=512, 513}} Monarchy was abolished in Bulgaria and Romania.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=513}} Across Eastern Europe, the Soviet model was enforced, with a termination of political pluralism, agricultural collectivisation, and investment in heavy industry.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=516}} It was aimed at establishing economic [[autarky]] within the Eastern Bloc.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=516}}

====Asia====
[[File:Ji8, 3-1, Sino-Soviet Friendship, 1950.jpg|thumb|right|1950 Chinese stamp depicting Stalin and [[Mao Zedong|Mao]] shaking hands, commemorating the signing of the new [[Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance|Sino-Soviet Treaty]]]]
In October 1949, Chinese communist leader [[Mao Zedong]] took power in China.{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=301|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=509|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3p=286}} With this accomplished, Marxist governments now controlled a third of the world's land mass.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=509}} Privately, Stalin revealed that he had underestimated the Chinese Communists and their ability to win the civil war, instead encouraging them to make another peace with the KMT.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=553}} In December 1949, Mao visited Stalin. Initially Stalin refused to repeal the [[Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Alliance|Sino-Soviet Treaty of 1945]], which significantly benefited the Soviet Union over China, although in January 1950 he relented and agreed to sign [[Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance|a new treaty between the two countries]].{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=509|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2pp=287–291}} Stalin was concerned that Mao might follow Tito's example by pursuing a course independent of Soviet influence, and made it known that if displeased he would withdraw assistance from China; the Chinese desperately needed said assistance after decades of civil war.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=552|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=287}}

At the end of the Second World War, the Soviet Union and the United States divided up the Korean Peninsula, formerly a Japanese colonial possession, along the [[Division of Korea|38th parallel]], setting up a communist government in the north and a pro-Western, anti-communist government in the south.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=552|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=294}} North Korean leader [[Kim Il Sung]] visited Stalin in March 1949 and again in March 1950; he wanted to invade the south and although Stalin was initially reluctant to provide support, he eventually agreed by May 1950.{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=302|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=553|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3pp=294–295}} The [[North Korean Army]] launched the [[Korean War]] by invading South Korea in June 1950, making swift gains and capturing [[Seoul]].{{sfn|Service|2004|p=554}} Both Stalin and Mao believed that a swift victory would ensue.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=554}} The U.S. went to the UN Security Council—which the Soviets were boycotting over its refusal to recognise Mao's government—and secured international military support for the South Koreans. U.S. led forces pushed the North Koreans back.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=554|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2pp=295–296}} Stalin wanted to avoid direct Soviet conflict with the U.S., convincing the Chinese to aid the North.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1pp=555–556|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2p=296}}

The Soviet Union was one of the first nations to extend diplomatic recognition to the newly created [[state of Israel]] in 1948, in hopes of obtaining an ally in the Middle East.{{sfn|Yegorov, 15 December 2017}} When the Israeli ambassador [[Golda Meir]] arrived in the USSR, Stalin was angered by the Jewish crowds who gathered to greet her.{{sfn|Conquest|1991|p=291}} He was further angered by Israel's [[Israel–United States relations|growing alliance with the U.S.]]{{sfn|Khlevniuk|2015|p=285}} After Stalin fell out with Israel, he launched an anti-Jewish campaign within the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc.{{sfn|Service|2004|p=518}} In November 1948, he abolished the JAC,{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=291|2a1=Service|2y=2004|2p=577|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3p=284}} and show trials took place for some of its members.{{sfnm|1a1=Volkogonov|1y=1991|1p=567|2a1=Brackman|2y=2001|2pp=384–385}} The Soviet press engaged in vituperative attacks on [[Zionism]], Jewish culture, and "rootless cosmopolitanism",{{sfnm|1a1=Conquest|1y=1991|1p=291|2a1=Khlevniuk|2y=2015|2pp=308–309}} with growing levels of anti-Semitism being expressed across Soviet society.{{sfn|Service|2004|pp=576–577}} Stalin's increasing tolerance of anti-Semitism may have stemmed from his increasing Russian nationalism or from the recognition that anti-Semitism had proved a useful mobilising tool for Hitler and that he could do the same;{{sfn|Conquest|1991|p=290}} he may have increasingly viewed the Jewish people as a "counter-revolutionary" nation whose members were loyal to the U.S.{{sfn|Khlevniuk|2015|p=286}} There were rumours, although they have never been substantiated, that Stalin was planning on deporting all Soviet Jews to the [[Jewish Autonomous Region]] in [[Birobidzhan]], eastern Siberia.{{sfnm|1a1=Service|1y=2004|1p=577|2a1=Overy|2y=2004|2p=565|3a1=Khlevniuk|3y=2015|3p=309}}
[[File:Vrachi-timashuk.png|thumb|upright|20 January 1953. Soviet [[ukaz]] awarding Lydia Timashuk the [[Order of Lenin]] for "unmasking doctors-killers." Revoked after Stalin's death later that year.]]