The Battle of Romania in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 comprised several operations in or around Romania

Romania

Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

 in 1944, as part of the Eastern Front. The Red Army

Red Army

The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

 launched two offensives against combined German

Wehrmacht

The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...

-Romanian defenses in an attempt to reclaim the Moldavian SSR

Moldavian SSR

The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...

 and open a way into the Balkans

Balkans

The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

:

• The First Jassy-Kishinev Offensive
  First Jassy-Kishinev Offensive
  The First Jassy–Kishinev Offensive, named after the two major cities in the area, was fought between 8 April and 6 June 1944 by the Soviets and Axis powers of World War II...
  
   between April 8 and June 6, which ended in failure as the Axis
  Axis Powers
  The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
  
   forces resisted the invasion
• The Second Jassy-Kishinev Offensive between August 20 and August 29, which ended with a decisive Soviet victory.

During the second offensive, Romania switched sides, thus allegedly shortening the war by six months. The German Sixth Army

German Sixth Army

The 6th Army was a designation for German field armies which saw action in World War I and World War II. The 6th Army is best known for fighting in the Battle of Stalingrad, during which it became the first entire German field army to be completely destroyed...

 was encircled and destroyed for the second time, while the severely weakened Eighth Army retreated to Hungary

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

. Soviet losses were minimal.