Unveiling hidden russophilia or paradoxical pragmatism? Slovak-Soviet relations under the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact

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Dátum

2026

Názov časopisu

ISSN časopisu

Názov zväzku

Vydavateľ

Cambridge University Press : London

ISBN

ISSN

0960-7773
1469-2171

Abstrakt

This article examines the short-lived episode of Slovak–Soviet relations between 1939 and 1941, framed by the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact and terminated by the German invasion of the USSR. Using archival and published sources, it analyses how the Hlinka Slovak People’s Party (HSĽS) reconciled its identity as a Christian, anti-Bolshevik movement with diplomatic accommodation of Moscow. The study demonstrates the structural dependency of Slovak foreign policy on the German Reich, showing that the establishment, development and collapse of relations with the Soviet Union were contingent on German strategic choices rather than Slovak initiative. It also highlights Slovak elites’ attempts to exploit the geopolitical window to expand autonomy, nurturing illusory hopes of a Bratislava–Moscow axis to counterbalance Berlin. Ultimately, pragmatic calculation outweighed Russophile or Slavophile rhetoric. The Slovak case thus illustrates the constrained agency of small Axis states, the malleability of ideology under hegemonic domination and the volatility of fascist diplomacy.

Popis

In: Contemporary European History. London : Cambridge University Press, 2026. ISSN 0960-7773. Vol. 35 (2026), pp. 1-17.

Kľúčové slová

zahraničná politika, foreign policy, ruská zahraničná politika, Russian foreign policy, slovensko-sovietske vzťahy, Slovak-Soviet relations druhá svetová vojna (1939-1945), 2. svetová vojna, World War (1939-1945), World War II, Slovenský štát, Slovak State, slovenský vojnový štát

Výstup z projektu

APVV-24-0359 Russlo - "Medveď v nás". Fenomén rusofilstva v modernom politickom vývoji Slovenska v Európskych perspektívach (korene, genéza a matamorfózy od 19. storočia po súčasnosť)

Citácia

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CC BY Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess