Non-aggression pact
Encyclopedia
A non-aggression pact is an international treaty
between two or more states/countries agreeing to avoid war or armed conflict between them and resolve their disputes through peaceful negotiations. Sometimes such a pact may include a pledge of avoiding armed conflict even if participants find themselves fighting third countries, including allies of one of the participants.
It was a popular form of international agreement in the 1920s and 1930s, but has largely fallen out of use after the Second World War. Since the implementation of a non-aggression pact depends on the good faith of the parties, the international community following the Second World War adopted the norm of multilateral collective security agreements, such as the treaties establishing NATO, ANZUS
and SEATO.
The most famous non-aggression pact is the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union
and Nazi Germany
, which lasted until the 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa
.
Examples of such pacts in history:
During negotiations between the United States
and North Korea
in 2003, North Korea offered to eventually eliminate its nuclear weapons program
if both sides signed a non-aggression treaty (along with multiple other conditions). As of this date, however, a nonaggression treaty between the two has yet to be formulated.
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
between two or more states/countries agreeing to avoid war or armed conflict between them and resolve their disputes through peaceful negotiations. Sometimes such a pact may include a pledge of avoiding armed conflict even if participants find themselves fighting third countries, including allies of one of the participants.
It was a popular form of international agreement in the 1920s and 1930s, but has largely fallen out of use after the Second World War. Since the implementation of a non-aggression pact depends on the good faith of the parties, the international community following the Second World War adopted the norm of multilateral collective security agreements, such as the treaties establishing NATO, ANZUS
ANZUS
The Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty is the military alliance which binds Australia and New Zealand and, separately, Australia and the United States to cooperate on defence matters in the Pacific Ocean area, though today the treaty is understood to relate to attacks...
and SEATO.
The most famous non-aggression pact is the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
, which lasted until the 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
.
Examples of such pacts in history:
- Peace of CalliasPeace of CalliasThe Peace of Callias is a purported treaty established around 449 BC between the Delian League and Persia, ending the Persian Wars. The peace was agreed as the first compromise treaty between Achaemenid Persia and a Greek city....
(449-450 BC) - Treaty of London (1518)
- Soviet–Lithuanian Non-Aggression PactSoviet–Lithuanian Non-Aggression PactSoviet–Lithuanian Non-Aggression Pact was a non-aggression pact, signed between the Soviet Union and Lithuania on September 28, 1926. The pact confirmed all basic provisions of the Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty of 1920...
(September 28, 1926) - Greek-Romanian Non-Aggression and Arbitration Pact (March 21, 1928)
- Soviet-Afghan Non-Aggression Pact (June 24, 1931)
- Soviet–Finnish Non-Aggression Pact (January 21, 1932)
- Soviet-Latvian Non-Aggression Pact (February 5, 1932)
- Soviet-Estonian Non-Aggression Pact (May 4, 1932)
- Soviet–Polish Non-Aggression Pact (July 25, 1932)
- Soviet-Italian Non-Aggression Pact (September 2, 1933)
- Romanian-Turkish Non-Aggression Pact (October 17, 1933)
- Turkish-Yugoslav Non-Aggression Pact (November 27, 1933)
- German–Polish Non-Aggression Pact (January 26, 1934)
- Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual AssistanceFranco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual AssistanceThe Franco–Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance was a bilateral pact between the two countries with the aim of containing Nazi Germany's aggression in 1935. It was pursued by Louis Barthou, who was the French Foreign Minister but he was assassinated before negotiations were finished...
(May 2, 1935) - German-Danish Non-Aggression Pact (May 31, 1939)
- German–Estonian Non-Aggression Pact (June 7, 1939)
- German–Latvian Non-Aggression Pact (June 7, 1939)
- Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact (23 August 1939)
- British-Thai Non-Aggression PactBritish-Thai Non-Aggression PactThe British-Thai Non-Aggression Pact was concluded in Bangkok on June 12, 1940 between the governments of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Thailand...
(June 12, 1940) - Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact (April 13, 1941)
- German–Turkish Non-Aggression PactGerman–Turkish Non-Aggression PactThe German-Turkish Non-Aggression Pact was signed between Nazi Germany and Turkey on June 18, 1941 in Ankara by German ambassador to Turkey Franz von Papen and Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Şükrü Saracoğlu...
(June 18, 1941)
During negotiations between the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
in 2003, North Korea offered to eventually eliminate its nuclear weapons program
North Korea and weapons of mass destruction
North Korea has declared that it has nuclear weapons and is believed by many to have nuclear weapons. The CIA assesses that North Korea also has a substantial arsenal of chemical weapons...
if both sides signed a non-aggression treaty (along with multiple other conditions). As of this date, however, a nonaggression treaty between the two has yet to be formulated.