Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty: Difference between revisions

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			{{short description\|Signed between Lithuania and Soviet Russia on 12 July 1920}}
	The '''Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920''' also known as '''Moscow Peace Treaty''' was signed between ] and ] on July 12, ]. In exchange for Lithuanian's neutrality and permission to use its territory in ] Soviet Russia recognized the existence and eastern borders of Lithuania.
			{{Borders of the Baltic states}}
			] of the 13th to the 16th centuries but disputed by Belarusians.<ref>{{cite book \| last = Bumblauskas \| first = Alfredas \| author-link = Alfredas Bumblauskas \| title = Senosios Lietuvos istorija 1009–1795 \| publisher = Pakalnio l-kla \| year = 2005 \| location = Vilnius \| isbn = 9986-830-89-3 \| page = 23 }}</ref>]]

			The '''Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty''', also known as the '''Moscow Peace Treaty''', was signed between ] and ] on July 12, 1920. In exchange for Lithuania's neutrality and permission to move its troops in the territory that was recognised during ], Soviet Russia recognized the sovereignty of Lithuania. The treaty was a major milestone in Lithuania's struggle for international recognition and recognised Lithuania's eastern borders. ] officially maintained that its '']'' borders were those delineated by the treaty although a large territory, the ], was actually controlled by ].

			Ratification documents were exchanged in ] on October 14, 1920. The treaty was registered in the ''League of Nations Treaty Series'' on March 8, 1921.<ref>''League of Nations Treaty Series'', vol. 3, pp. 106–137</ref>

	==Background==		==Background==
			{{main\|Lithuanian–Soviet War}}
	In 1919 Polish forces had been ]; ], the claimed capital of Lithuania, was ] in April. The Soviets at that time considered the ] to be the biggest threat and were pursuing a strategy of negotiations with their neighbours, including Poland. The first Lithuanian-Russian ]s began in ] ], after ] of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Russia ] sent a note with a proposal for a ]. Lithuanians perceived it as recognition of a ''de facto'' state<ref name="Čepėnas">Čepėnas, ''"Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija, vol II'', p. 355</ref>. At a trilateral meeting in ], ], ] and Lithuania agreed to begin peace talks with the Soviets simultaneously. Lithuania's ], ] did not respond to this proposal until ] ], and then asked whether the Soviets would accept Lithuania's demands to recognise its boundaries in its claimed ] territory - i.e., the territories of former ], ], ] and ] (Suvalkai) ]s - an area which had been claimed by both Lithuania and the ]. The Soviets at that time were preparing a major counteroffensive against Poland and agreed to open negotiations with Lithuania and suggested a start to preliminary peace talks on ].
			Lithuania ] from the former ] on February 16, 1918. In March, the Bolsheviks signed the ] and renounced any claims to the ], including Lithuania. ], the German occupying authority, did not allow Lithuania to establish government institutions, organize military or police forces or attempt to define its borders. Lithuanian independence remained a largely-unrealized political declaration.{{cn\|date=July 2020}}

			That changed when ] in November 1918. Lithuanians hurriedly adopted a provisional constitution, formed a government and started to organise an army.<ref>(in Lithuanian) Paleckis, Mindaugas (2006-10-24): http://www.bernardinai.lt/straipsnis/2006-10-24-karaliskojo-kraujo-paieskos-lietuva-ir-simto-dienu-karalius/4976</ref>
	The talks started in ] on ]. In the proposed text of the treaty, written by ], the Soviet Union withdrew all territorial claims to Lithuania, and promised to return stolen cultural and historical properties. A working commission was created which evaluated the damage done to Lithuania at about 816 million ]s, and 407 million rubles for the damage to territory then controlled by Poland. During the peace talks, M. Balinsky's census of 1857 was provided as evidence that the territory was inhabited mainly by Lithuanians. ] of the Lithuanian delegation and a Soviet official ] agreed that the territory of Lithuania could be easily identified, as it was inhabited by ].<ref name="Čepėnas2">Čepėnas, ''"Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija, vol II'', p. 359</ref> However, the Soviets would not agree on the border proposed by Lithuania, and Lithuania was unwilling to offer military assistance and join the Soviets in their war against Poland. On ], ] the Lithuanian delegation threatened to withdraw from the peace talks.

			Soviet Russia denounced the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and renewed its interest in the Baltic region. In late December 1918, Lithuanian territory was invaded by Bolshevik forces, who were pursuing the retreating Germans. That marked the beginning of the ] and the ]. Within a month, Soviet forces controlled large portions of northern and eastern Lithuania. The advance was stopped only with help from ]. In ], the Bolsheviks proclaimed a puppet Soviet government, led by ]. In February 1919, the ] was merged with the ], to form ].<ref name=tread/> The entity was short-lived, as Poland and Lithuania successfully counterattacked. ], the historic capital of Lithuania, was ] in April. The last Bolsheviks were pushed from Lithuanian territory at the end of August.<ref name=gerutis/> Litbel had its entire territory taken by September 1919 and ceased to exist.<ref name=tread/>
	==The treaty==
	]
	The talks continued only after the ] received an assurance that England would support Lithuanian demands in its talks with Poland.<ref name="Čepėnas3">Čepėnas, ''"Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija, vol II'', p. 359</ref> As the Soviet offensive against Poland was quite successful and the ] was approaching Vilnius, the Lithuanians signed the treaty on ], revising their previous territorial demands{{Fact\|date=April 2007}}. The Soviets Union acknowledged Lithuanian authority over the ], including ] (Brasław), Hrodna, ], ] and Vilnius. The fate of the ] region, however, was not determined by the treaty. The ] also promised to pay ] to Lithuania and allow Lithuanians stranded in The Soviet Union to return to their homeland. After some debate over whether the treaty was a declaration only and whether the Soviets had accepted any real liability, the Lithuanian ] (]) ] it on ] ].

			==Negotiations==
	===Military support===
			===Stalling diplomatic talks===
			As the Bolsheviks were pushed from the Baltic region, Lenin sought to arrange peace treaties to ease anti-Bolshevik tensions in Europe.<ref name=gerutis/> The first Lithuanian–Russian attempt at negotiation took place on September 11, 1919, when the ] of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Russia, ], sent a note with a proposal for a ]. It was a ''de facto'' recognition of the Lithuanian state.<ref name=cepenas/> Similar proposals were delivered to ] and ]. On September 14 and 15, the Baltic states held a trilateral meeting in ] and agreed to begin simultaneous peace talks with the Soviets.<ref name=cd/>

			However, Lithuania delayed contacting Moscow and the collective negotiations did not take place.<ref name=cd/> Lithuanian feared that negotiations with communist Russia, which was isolated from European politics, would damage its relationships with the western powers that had not yet recognized Lithuania.<ref name=cd/> While Lithuania was preparing for the first democratic elections to the ], election campaigns urged the government to start negotiations.<ref name=cd/> On March 31, 1920, ], the Lithuanian minister of foreign affairs, informed Soviet diplomats that Lithuania was ready to open the talks if Moscow recognized Lithuania within its ethnic lands and acknowledged Vilnius as its capital.<ref name=debo/> The Soviets agreed to discuss the situation and suggested for preliminary negotiations to begin on April 15. The talks in Moscow did not begin until May 7.{{cn\|date=July 2019}}
	The treaty included a secret clause allowing Soviet forces free movement within Lithuanian territory.<ref name="Łossowski2_85">Łossowski, ''"Litwa"'', p. 85</ref> At the same time, the Lithuanian military would disarm and intern Polish forces. The treaty, however, did not create a formal ] between Soviets and Lithuanians because the Soviets, who had been pressing Lithuania for an alliance in May, were confident by July, after a series of successes, that they could conquer Poland by themselves.

			===Positions===
	The day after signing the treaty, the Lithuanian forces began to aid the Bolshevik offensive against Vilnius, and on ] engaged the Poles defending the city.<ref name="Łossowski3_137">Łossowski, ''"Po tej i tamtej ..."'', p. 137</ref> Other historians argue that it was the Polish army which attacked the Lithuanian forces first.<ref name="Wilkenfeld">Brecher, Michael; Wilkenfeld, Jonathan, ''"A study of crisis"'', p. 253</ref>{{Dubious}} Thus began the ].
			The Lithuanian delegation, led by Tomas Naruševičius, demanded for Russia to recognise the independent Lithuania as a legal successor of the ], but the Soviet delegation, led by ], was prepared to recognize Lithuania only based on the ] principle.<ref name=eidintas/> Territorial disputes were the most contentious issue. Lithuania demanded the territories of former ], ], ] and ]s.<ref name=eidintas/> Those areas, according to the Lithuanians, were ethnically Lithuanian. M. Balinsky's census of 1857 was provided as evidence that the territory was inhabited primarily by Lithuanians. Lithuanians asserted that the large Jewish and Belarusian populations in the region wanted to be part of Lithuania. They brought a representative of each group, Simon Rosenbaum and Dominyk Semashko, to support that case.<ref name=eidintas/> It was agreed that the territory of Lithuania could be easily identified, as it was inhabited by ].<ref name=cepenas/> The ] also laid claim to the territory and had actual control over it at the time, especially ], and a few years later, the ] was established.{{cn\|date=July 2020}}

			The Soviets agreed to recognize the territory to Lithuania if it agreed to form a ] against Poland, which was engaged in the ] against Soviet Russia.<ref name=eidintas/> The Lithuanians were tempted by the opportunity to regain Vilnius but refused. Even though the Soviets seemed a natural ally against Poland, Lithuanians reasoned that staying on good terms with Poland and its allies, France and Britain, was a better long-term strategy.<ref name= eidintas/> Lithuania informed Britain about Soviet plans on the hope that such a move would prove Lithuania's trustworthiness and would put indirect pressure on Poland to reach an agreement regarding Vilnius that was acceptable.<ref name=eidintas/> Those tactics did not prove successful since Poland was invariably backed by France and indirect British pressure was not strong enough to change Poland's foreign policy.<ref name=eidintas/>
	When the Bolshevik forces entered Vilnius on ], they installed the ] of the former ] (or "Lit-Bel", for short) headed by ]. This government was intended to start a ] and began to prepare for action against the Lithuanian Republic. Lithuania issued several protests, first on ]. Eventually, on ], about two weeks after its August defeat in the ], the ] retreating from the Poles left Vilnius under Lithuanian control in order to prevent Poles from gaining control over it.

			The negotiations were long and difficult. While the Russians were losing ground to the Poles, who took Kiev in May 1920, the Lithuanians sought to delay the talks. On May 22, 1920, the Lithuanian delegation even threatened to withdraw from the peace talks. However, as the situation changed, and Russia successfully counterattacked, the Lithuanians were pressured into signing the treaty on July 12.<ref name=cd/> After some debate over whether the treaty was sincere, and the Soviets had assumed any real liability, the ] ratified it on August 8, 1920.{{cn\|date=July 2019}}

			==Terms==
			], which were assigned to ] under the peace treaty, are marked in green]]
			The treaty had 19 articles. Article 1 stipulated that Russia recognized Lithuania's independence without reservations and voluntarily abandoned any territorial claims.<ref name=el/> Article 2 described the Lithuanian territory. The Soviet Union acknowledged Lithuanian authority over the ], including ], ], ], ] and ]. The fate of the ] was not determined by the treaty, as the line was drawn only to the village of ]. The Bolsheviks also promised to pay ] in the amount of three million ] and 107,000 ] of timber.<ref name=el/> Lithuania was relieved of any debt obligations.

			The treaty allowed refugees and ] to return to their homeland. Lithuania then held about 2,000 Russian prisoners, and Russia held about 150 Lithuanians.<ref name=eidintas/> Russians in Lithuania could opt for either Lithuanian or Russian citizenship.<ref name=el/> Russia promised to return any cultural and historical property that was removed during the wars. A working commission was created, which evaluated the damage to Lithuania at about 816 million rubles, and 407 million rubles for damage to the territory that was controlled by Poland. Separate agreements would be made later to decide protection of the frontier, conventions of trade and transit and other details.<ref name=el/>

			The treaty also contained a secret clause that allowed Soviet forces unrestricted movement within Soviet-recognized Lithuanian territory for the duration of Soviet hostilities with Poland; that clause would lead to questions regarding the issue of Lithuanian ] in the ongoing ].<ref name=lossowski85/><ref name=lossowski126/>

			Lithuania was to stop the activities of the "anti-Soviet organisations and groups" on its territory, including the activities of the exiled bodies of the ].<ref>''Гісторыя Беларусі: У 6 т. Т. 5. Беларусь у 1917–1945. – Мн.: Экаперспектыва, 2006. – 613 с.; іл. {{ISBN\|985-469-149-7}}.''</ref>

	== Aftermath ==		== Aftermath ==
	The treaty was a major breakthrough for international recogintion of Lithuanian Republic. It proved functional furthermore, because many people who had lived in Lithuania before ] returned to their homeland, although the Soviet Union did not pay all its reparations and never seriously considered returning cultural and historical property. Today, Lithuanian politicians and historians are still seeking to regain those items, but the Russian government claims that they are lost.

			===Polish–Lithuanian conflict===
	Despite the treaty, the Soviet ] was already considering the occupation of non-] Lithuania on ],<ref name="Łossowski2_86">Łossowski, ''"Litwa"'', p. 86</ref> and ] and ] subsequently prepared an occupation plan. However, the Bolshevik defeat in the ] forced them to try to reach an early peace agreement with Poland. The plan to annex Lithuania was abandoned for two decades, until ] allowed the Soviet Union to ] and ] ].
			{{main\|Polish–Lithuanian War}}
			While the treaty was being negotiated and signed, most of the territory granted by the treaty to Lithuania was already controlled by Bolshevik forces.<ref name=cepenas/> As the Russian front was pushing away the Poles, Lithuania attempted to secure the borders outlined in the treaty. Lithuanian forces crossed the ] on July 19, seeking to take control of the territories granted to Lithuania by the Soviet Union, advancing rapidly despite Polish protests and, in several cases, fighting skirmishes with the retreating Polish forces.<ref name=lossowski126/> That led to ] over the towns of ], ] and ].<ref name=el2/> According to historian ], the Lithuanians also provided the Soviets with logistical support.<ref name=lossowski126/>

			The Bolshevik forces were the first to enter Vilnius on July 14, 1920, although the treaty did not transfer it to the Lithuanians.<ref name= eidintas2/> The Soviets installed a ], the former ], with the intent of fomenting a ]. ] and ] were preparing the overthrow of the Lithuanian government.<ref name=lossowski85/> The plans never came to pass since Poland defeated Soviet forces in the ] between August 13 and August 25.<ref name=senn1962/> On August 26, as the Polish Army was approaching the southern borders of Lithuania, the Soviets finally transferred Vilnius to Lithuanian control and the ] retreated.<ref>Snyder, Timothy (2004). ''''. Yale University Press. pp. 62–63. {{ISBN\|0-300-10586-X}}.</ref><ref>Senn, Alfred Erich (September 1962). ''The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918–1921''. Slavic Review. 3 (21): 500–507. {{doi\|10.2307/3000451}}. {{ISSN\|0037-6779}}.</ref>
	== See also ==
	*]
	*]
	*]

			In September, when the Poles had gained an upper hand and were pursuing the Soviets back to the east, Soviet forces moved at will through Lithuanian-controlled territory, but Polish forces that tried to pursue them were arrested and interned.<ref name=lossowski126/> Lithuania's declared neutrality was challenged by Poland, which accused Lithuania of allowing free Soviet passage through its territory, which Lithuania could not deny.<ref name=eidintas2/> The treaty did not create a formal ] between the Soviets and the Lithuanians but it diminished Lithuania's standing as a neutral state.<ref name=eidintas/><ref name=lossowski126/> Łossowski wrote that Lithuania's lack of neutrality towards Poland was such that "the Polish government could have with full justification treated Lithuania as a country participating in the war on the other side, with all of its political and legal implications".<ref name=lossowski126/> Historian ] wrote that "the Lithuanians cannot claim to have been 'strictly neutral'", and that "the Lithuanians should not have been surprised when, at the end of August, Warsaw refused to recognize Kaunas's neutrality".<ref name=senn1966/> This can be understood in the context of ], ], ] and other intrigues by the Polish side, which made Lithuanians suspicious of their true intentions.
	==Notes==

	{{reflist}}
			In late August, Lithuanian and Polish missions met in ] to negotiate the situation. While the talks were underway, Polish troops retook Sejny, Augustów, and Suwałki in the south.<ref name=eidintas2/> The ] held great symbolic importance for the Lithuanians as a locus of their independence movement.<ref name=strazas/> Lithuania mounted military operations in the area. Poland also wanted to seize Vilnius, which it had been forced to abandon during the Soviet offensive in July. The clashes led to a ] in September.<ref name=el2/><ref name=eidintas2/> An intervention was made by the ], which brokered the ] on October 7, 1920, which was to have taken effect on October 10. However, on October 9, Polish General ] ], invaded Lithuania and took over Vilnius. Most of the Vilnius and Suwałki Regions would remain under Polish control during the interwar period, and interwar ] were described as "no war, no peace".<ref name= eidintas3/>

			===Legacy===
			The treaty represented a major breakthrough in Lithuania's quest for international recognition. The provision that permitted the return of Lithuanian ] refugees and prisoners was a welcomed development. However, the Soviet Union did not pay all its reparations and never seriously considered returning the cultural and historical property.<ref name=el/> Lithuanian politicians and historians continue to seek the return of those items, but the Russian government claims that they are lost.{{cn\|date=July 2019}}

			Modern ] regards the treaty, especially the cession of territories of modern Belarus to Lithuania (primarily ], ], ], ], ], ], ] but also the contemporary ] with ]) as a unilateral act by the Soviet authorities that disregarded the national interests of the Belarusian people and was aimed at immediate military and political gains.<ref name=belarus/>

			Some historians have asserted that if Poland had not prevailed in the ], Lithuania would have been invaded by the Soviets, and would never have experienced two decades of independence.<ref name="Senn"/> Despite the Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty, Lithuania was very close to being invaded by the Soviets in summer 1920 and being forcibly incorporated into that state, and only the Polish victory derailed this plan.<ref name="Senn">], ''The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918–1921'', Slavic Review, Vol. 21, No. 3. (Sep., 1962), pp. 500–507.: ''"A Bolshevik victory over the Poles would have certainly meant a move by the Lithuanian communists, backed by the Red Army, to overthrow the Lithuanian nationalist government... Kaunas, in effect, paid for its independence with the loss of Vilna."''<br />Alfred Erich Senn, ''Lietuvos valstybes...'' p. 163: ''"If the Poles didn't stop the Soviet attack, Lithuania would fell to the Soviets... Polish victory costs the Lithuanians the city of Wilno, but saved Lithuania itself."''<br />], ''Kovos del Lietuvos nepriklausomybes'', t.3, p. 417: ''"In summer 1920 Russia was working on a communist revolution in Lithuania... From this disaster Lithuania was saved by the ]."''<br />Jonas Rudokas, (Polish translation of a Lithuanian article) "Veidas", 25 08 2005: '' "defended both Poland and Lithuanian from Soviet domination"''</ref>

			The bilingual treaty was signed in two copies of equal power and the Lithuanian copy, which prior to the ] was first evacuated to ] and later to ] by the Lithuanian diplomat Vytautas Jonas Gylys, was found in 2021 and was transferred to the Lithuanian Central State Archive.<ref>{{cite web \|last1=Antanavičius \|first1=Ugnius \|title=Kanadoje laimingo atsitiktinumo dėka rastas 1920 m. Lietuvos sutarties su Sovietų Rusija originalas \|url=https://www.15min.lt/ar-zinai/naujiena/idomi-lietuva/kanadoje-laimingo-atsitiktinumo-deka-rastas-1920-m-lietuvos-sutarties-su-sovietu-rusija-originalas-1162-1528934 \|website=] \|access-date=4 July 2021 \|language=lt}}</ref>

			==See also==
			* ] – similar treaty with Latvia, signed on 11 August 1920
			* ] – similar treaty with Estonia, signed on 2 February 1920
			* ] – similar treaty with Finland, signed on 14 October 1920
			* ] – similar treaty involving Poland, Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine, signed on 18 March 1921

	==References==		==References==
			{{reflist\|refs=
	*{{cite book \|last = Čepėnas \|first = Pranas \| authorlink = Pranas Čepėnas \| title=Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija, vol. II \| year = 1986 \| publisher = Dr. Griniaus fondas \| location = Chicago \|language = Lithuanian \| isbn = 5-899570121 }}
			<ref name=belarus>{{cite book\| first=У.Ф. \|last=Ладысеў \|chapter=Станаўленне беларускай нацыянальнай дзяржаўнасці ў XX стагоддзі (метадалагічны аспект) \|title=Заходні рэгіён Беларусі вачыма гісторыкаў і краязнаўцаў: зборнік навук \|url=http://www.lib.grsu.by/library/data/resources/catalog/103701-158426.pdf \|location=Гродна \|publisher=ГрДУ \|year=2006 \|pages=5–10 \|isbn=985-417-834-X\|language=be}}</ref>
	* {{cite book \| first = Piotr \| last = Łossowski \| authorlink = Piotr Łossowski \| title = "Litwa" \| location = Warszawa \| publisher = TRIO \| year = 2001 \| language = Polish \| isbn = 83-85660-59-3 }}
			<ref name=cd>{{cite book \| last=Skirius \| first=Juozas \| title=Gimtoji istorija. Nuo 7 iki 12 klasės \| url=http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/ \| access-date=2008-03-30 \| year=2002 \| publisher=Elektroninės leidybos namai \| location=Vilnius \| isbn=9986-9216-9-4 \| chapter=Lietuvos–Rusijos Sovietų Federacinės Socialistinės Respublikos taikos sutartis \| chapter-url=http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/?id=1018 \| language=lt \| url-status=dead \| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080303191252/http://mkp.emokykla.lt/gimtoji/ \| archive-date=2008-03-03 }}</ref>
	* {{cite book \| first = Piotr \| last = Łossowski \| title = "Po tej i tamtej stronie Niemna" \| location = Warszawa \| publisher = Czytelnik \| year = 1985 \| language = Polish \| isbn = 83-07-01289-9 }}
			<ref name=cepenas>{{cite book \|last= Čepėnas \|first= Pranas \|author-link= Pranas Čepėnas \| title=Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija \|volume= II \|year= 1986 \|publisher= Dr. Griniaus fondas \| location= Chicago \|isbn= 5-89957-012-1 \|pages= 355–359\|language=lt}}</ref>
	* Łossowski, Piotr, ''Konflikt polsko-litewski 1918-1920'' (The Polish-Lithuanian Conflict, 1918–1920), Warsaw, Książka i Wiedza, 1995, ISBN 8305127699
			<ref name=debo>{{cite book \| title=Survival and Consolidation: The Foreign Policy of Soviet Russia, 1918-1921 \|first=Richard K. \|last=Debo \|year=1992 \|publisher=McGill-Queen's Press \| isbn=0-7735-0828-7\| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=gQfUB0CXBO4C&pg=PA206 \| page=206}}</ref>
	* {{cite book \|last=Brecher\|first=Michael \|coauthors=Jonathan Wilkenfeld \|title=A Study of Crisis \|url=http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0472108069&id=GjY7aV_6FPwC&pg=PA253&lpg=PA253&ots=uX_r2gMHjU&dq=Vilna+plebiscite&sig=Dk20v9DAe8KGzZOwKuJxQFJ4l7E \|year=1997 \|publisher= University of Michigan Press\|isbn=0472108069 }}
			<ref name= eidintas>{{cite book \| last=Eidintas \| first=Alfonsas \| author2=Vytautas Žalys\| author3=Alfred Erich Senn \| editor=Ed. Edvardas Tuskenis \| title=Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918–1940 \| edition=Paperback \|date=September 1999 \| publisher=St. Martin's Press \| location=New York \| isbn=0-312-22458-3 \| pages=67–70}}</ref>
			<ref name= eidintas2>{{cite book \| last=Eidintas \| first=Alfonsas \| author2=Vytautas Žalys\| author3=Alfred Erich Senn \| editor=Ed. Edvardas Tuskenis \| title=Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918–1940 \| edition=Paperback \|date=September 1999 \| publisher=St. Martin's Press \| location=New York \| isbn=0-312-22458-3 \| pages=72–74}}</ref>
			<ref name= eidintas3>{{cite book \| last=Eidintas \| first=Alfonsas \| author2=Vytautas Žalys\| author3=Alfred Erich Senn \| editor=Ed. Edvardas Tuskenis \| title=Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918–1940 \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0_i8yez8udgC&pg=PA85 \| edition=Paperback \|date=September 1999 \| publisher=St. Martin's Press \| location=New York \| isbn=0-312-22458-3 \| page=85}}</ref>
			<ref name=el>{{cite encyclopedia \| editor=Simas Sužiedėlis \| encyclopedia=] \| title=Moscow, Treaty of \| year=1970–1978 \| publisher=Juozas Kapočius \| volume=III \| location=Boston, Massachusetts \| pages=554–555\| lccn=74-114275 }}</ref>
			<ref name=el2>{{cite encyclopedia \| editor=Simas Sužiedėlis \| encyclopedia=] \| title=Independence, Wars of \| year=1970–1978 \| publisher=Juozas Kapočius \| volume=II \| location=Boston, Massachusetts \| pages=448–449\| lccn=74-114275 }}</ref>
			<ref name=gerutis>{{cite book \| last=Gerutis \| first=Algirdas \| editor=Ed. Albertas Gerutis \| others=translated by Algirdas Budreckis \| title=Lithuania: 700 Years \| year=1984 \| edition=6th \| publisher=Manyland Books \| location=New York \|isbn=0-87141-028-1 \| pages=163–165 \| chapter=Independent Lithuania\| lccn=75-80057 }}</ref>
			<ref name=lossowski85>{{cite book \|first= Piotr \|last= Łossowski \|author-link =Piotr Łossowski \|title= Litwa \| location = Warszawa \| publisher= TRIO \|year= 2001 \| isbn= 83-85660-59-3 \|pages=85–86\|language=pl}}</ref>
			<ref name=lossowski126>{{cite book \|first= Piotr \|last= Łossowski \|author-link =Piotr Łossowski \|title= Konflikt polsko-litewski 1918-1920 \| location = Warszawa \| publisher= Książka i Wiedza \|year= 1995 \| isbn= 83-05-12769-9 \|pages=126–128\|language=pl}}</ref>
			<ref name=senn1962>{{cite journal \|author-link=Alfred E. Senn \|first=Alfred Erich \|last=Senn \|title=The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918-1921 \|journal= Slavic Review \| volume=3 \|issue=21 \|date=September 1962 \| pages=500–507 \|doi=10.2307/3000451 \|publisher=The American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies \|jstor=3000451\|s2cid=156378406 }}</ref>
			<ref name=senn1966>{{cite book\| first=Alfred Erich \|last=Senn \|author-link=Alfred E. Senn \|title=The Great Powers, Lithuania and the Vilna question 1920–1928\| publisher=Leiden \|year=1966 \|oclc=398265 \|page=34}}</ref>
			<ref name=strazas>{{cite journal\|title=Lithuania 1863–1893: Tsarist Russification and the Beginnings of the Modern Lithuanian National Movement \|journal=] \|first=A. S. \|last=Stražas \|url=http://www.lituanus.org/1996/96_3_03.htm \|date=Fall 1996 \|issue=42 \|volume=3 \|quote=The Lithuanian regions of Suwałki brought forth a large number of scholars, writers, poets and public figures of both a nationalist orientation and belonging to various social ideologies.}}</ref>
			<ref name=tread>{{cite book \| title=Twentieth Century Russia \| first= Donald W. \|last= Treadgold \| year=1995 \|publisher=Westview Press \|isbn=0-8133-3672-4 \|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Xs8sYy1vIS0C&pg=PA137 \|page=137}}</ref>
			}}

			==External links==
			*
			*

			{{DEFAULTSORT:Soviet-Lithuanian Peace Treaty}}
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Latest revision as of 16:59, 25 October 2024

Signed between Lithuania and Soviet Russia on 12 July 1920

Territorial changes of the Baltic states in the 20th century
Post World War I Treaty of Versailles (1919) Treaty of Tartu (1920) Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty (1920) Latvian–Soviet Peace Treaty (1920) Suwałki Agreement (1920) Peace of Riga (1921) Klaipėda Revolt (1923) German ultimatum to Lithuania (1939)
World War II Lithuanian annexation by the Soviet Union (1940) Latvian annexation by the Soviet Union (1940) Estonian annexation by the Soviet Union (1940)
Post World War II Potsdam Conference (1945) Russian–Estonian boundary changes (1945) Russian–Latvian boundary changes (1945)
Areas Kresy Wschodnie ("Eastern Borderlands") Petseri County (1944) Abrenes apriņķis (1944)
Demarcation lines Curzon Line (1920)
Adjacent countries Territorial evolution of Poland
v t e

The Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty, also known as the Moscow Peace Treaty, was signed between Lithuania and Soviet Russia on July 12, 1920. In exchange for Lithuania's neutrality and permission to move its troops in the territory that was recognised during its war against Poland, Soviet Russia recognized the sovereignty of Lithuania. The treaty was a major milestone in Lithuania's struggle for international recognition and recognised Lithuania's eastern borders. Interwar Lithuania officially maintained that its de jure borders were those delineated by the treaty although a large territory, the Vilnius Region, was actually controlled by Poland.

Ratification documents were exchanged in Moscow on October 14, 1920. The treaty was registered in the League of Nations Treaty Series on March 8, 1921.

Background

Main article: Lithuanian–Soviet War

Lithuania declared independence from the former Russian Empire on February 16, 1918. In March, the Bolsheviks signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and renounced any claims to the Baltic states, including Lithuania. Ober Ost, the German occupying authority, did not allow Lithuania to establish government institutions, organize military or police forces or attempt to define its borders. Lithuanian independence remained a largely-unrealized political declaration.

That changed when Germany surrendered in November 1918. Lithuanians hurriedly adopted a provisional constitution, formed a government and started to organise an army.

Soviet Russia denounced the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and renewed its interest in the Baltic region. In late December 1918, Lithuanian territory was invaded by Bolshevik forces, who were pursuing the retreating Germans. That marked the beginning of the Lithuanian Wars of Independence and the Polish–Soviet War. Within a month, Soviet forces controlled large portions of northern and eastern Lithuania. The advance was stopped only with help from German volunteers. In Vilnius, the Bolsheviks proclaimed a puppet Soviet government, led by Vincas Mickevičius-Kapsukas. In February 1919, the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic was merged with the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia, to form Litbel. The entity was short-lived, as Poland and Lithuania successfully counterattacked. Vilnius, the historic capital of Lithuania, was seized by the Poles in April. The last Bolsheviks were pushed from Lithuanian territory at the end of August. Litbel had its entire territory taken by September 1919 and ceased to exist.

Negotiations

Stalling diplomatic talks

As the Bolsheviks were pushed from the Baltic region, Lenin sought to arrange peace treaties to ease anti-Bolshevik tensions in Europe. The first Lithuanian–Russian attempt at negotiation took place on September 11, 1919, when the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs of Soviet Russia, Georgy Chicherin, sent a note with a proposal for a peace treaty. It was a de facto recognition of the Lithuanian state. Similar proposals were delivered to Latvia and Estonia. On September 14 and 15, the Baltic states held a trilateral meeting in Tallinn and agreed to begin simultaneous peace talks with the Soviets.

However, Lithuania delayed contacting Moscow and the collective negotiations did not take place. Lithuanian feared that negotiations with communist Russia, which was isolated from European politics, would damage its relationships with the western powers that had not yet recognized Lithuania. While Lithuania was preparing for the first democratic elections to the Constituent Assembly of Lithuania, election campaigns urged the government to start negotiations. On March 31, 1920, Augustinas Voldemaras, the Lithuanian minister of foreign affairs, informed Soviet diplomats that Lithuania was ready to open the talks if Moscow recognized Lithuania within its ethnic lands and acknowledged Vilnius as its capital. The Soviets agreed to discuss the situation and suggested for preliminary negotiations to begin on April 15. The talks in Moscow did not begin until May 7.

Positions

The Lithuanian delegation, led by Tomas Naruševičius, demanded for Russia to recognise the independent Lithuania as a legal successor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, but the Soviet delegation, led by Adolph Joffe, was prepared to recognize Lithuania only based on the self-determination principle. Territorial disputes were the most contentious issue. Lithuania demanded the territories of former Kovno, Vilna, Grodno and Suwałki Governorates. Those areas, according to the Lithuanians, were ethnically Lithuanian. M. Balinsky's census of 1857 was provided as evidence that the territory was inhabited primarily by Lithuanians. Lithuanians asserted that the large Jewish and Belarusian populations in the region wanted to be part of Lithuania. They brought a representative of each group, Simon Rosenbaum and Dominyk Semashko, to support that case. It was agreed that the territory of Lithuania could be easily identified, as it was inhabited by Litvaks. The Second Polish Republic also laid claim to the territory and had actual control over it at the time, especially Vilnius Region, and a few years later, the Republic of Central Lithuania was established.

The Soviets agreed to recognize the territory to Lithuania if it agreed to form a military alliance against Poland, which was engaged in the Kiev offensive against Soviet Russia. The Lithuanians were tempted by the opportunity to regain Vilnius but refused. Even though the Soviets seemed a natural ally against Poland, Lithuanians reasoned that staying on good terms with Poland and its allies, France and Britain, was a better long-term strategy. Lithuania informed Britain about Soviet plans on the hope that such a move would prove Lithuania's trustworthiness and would put indirect pressure on Poland to reach an agreement regarding Vilnius that was acceptable. Those tactics did not prove successful since Poland was invariably backed by France and indirect British pressure was not strong enough to change Poland's foreign policy.

The negotiations were long and difficult. While the Russians were losing ground to the Poles, who took Kiev in May 1920, the Lithuanians sought to delay the talks. On May 22, 1920, the Lithuanian delegation even threatened to withdraw from the peace talks. However, as the situation changed, and Russia successfully counterattacked, the Lithuanians were pressured into signing the treaty on July 12. After some debate over whether the treaty was sincere, and the Soviets had assumed any real liability, the Constituent Assembly of Lithuania ratified it on August 8, 1920.

Terms

The treaty had 19 articles. Article 1 stipulated that Russia recognized Lithuania's independence without reservations and voluntarily abandoned any territorial claims. Article 2 described the Lithuanian territory. The Soviet Union acknowledged Lithuanian authority over the Vilnius Region, including Brasłaŭ, Hrodna, Lida, Pastavy and Vilnius. The fate of the Suvalkai Region was not determined by the treaty, as the line was drawn only to the village of Sztabin. The Bolsheviks also promised to pay war reparations in the amount of three million rubles and 107,000 hectares of timber. Lithuania was relieved of any debt obligations.

The treaty allowed refugees and prisoners of war to return to their homeland. Lithuania then held about 2,000 Russian prisoners, and Russia held about 150 Lithuanians. Russians in Lithuania could opt for either Lithuanian or Russian citizenship. Russia promised to return any cultural and historical property that was removed during the wars. A working commission was created, which evaluated the damage to Lithuania at about 816 million rubles, and 407 million rubles for damage to the territory that was controlled by Poland. Separate agreements would be made later to decide protection of the frontier, conventions of trade and transit and other details.

The treaty also contained a secret clause that allowed Soviet forces unrestricted movement within Soviet-recognized Lithuanian territory for the duration of Soviet hostilities with Poland; that clause would lead to questions regarding the issue of Lithuanian neutrality in the ongoing Polish-Soviet War.

Lithuania was to stop the activities of the "anti-Soviet organisations and groups" on its territory, including the activities of the exiled bodies of the Belarusian People's Republic.

Aftermath

Polish–Lithuanian conflict

Main article: Polish–Lithuanian War

While the treaty was being negotiated and signed, most of the territory granted by the treaty to Lithuania was already controlled by Bolshevik forces. As the Russian front was pushing away the Poles, Lithuania attempted to secure the borders outlined in the treaty. Lithuanian forces crossed the Foch line on July 19, seeking to take control of the territories granted to Lithuania by the Soviet Union, advancing rapidly despite Polish protests and, in several cases, fighting skirmishes with the retreating Polish forces. That led to clashes in southern Lithuania over the towns of Sejny, Augustów and Suwałki. According to historian Piotr Lossowski, the Lithuanians also provided the Soviets with logistical support.

The Bolshevik forces were the first to enter Vilnius on July 14, 1920, although the treaty did not transfer it to the Lithuanians. The Soviets installed a puppet government, the former Litbel, with the intent of fomenting a socialist revolution. Leon Trotsky and Mikhail Tukhachevsky were preparing the overthrow of the Lithuanian government. The plans never came to pass since Poland defeated Soviet forces in the Battle of Warsaw between August 13 and August 25. On August 26, as the Polish Army was approaching the southern borders of Lithuania, the Soviets finally transferred Vilnius to Lithuanian control and the Red Army retreated.

In September, when the Poles had gained an upper hand and were pursuing the Soviets back to the east, Soviet forces moved at will through Lithuanian-controlled territory, but Polish forces that tried to pursue them were arrested and interned. Lithuania's declared neutrality was challenged by Poland, which accused Lithuania of allowing free Soviet passage through its territory, which Lithuania could not deny. The treaty did not create a formal military alliance between the Soviets and the Lithuanians but it diminished Lithuania's standing as a neutral state. Łossowski wrote that Lithuania's lack of neutrality towards Poland was such that "the Polish government could have with full justification treated Lithuania as a country participating in the war on the other side, with all of its political and legal implications". Historian Alfred E. Senn wrote that "the Lithuanians cannot claim to have been 'strictly neutral'", and that "the Lithuanians should not have been surprised when, at the end of August, Warsaw refused to recognize Kaunas's neutrality". This can be understood in the context of Vilna offensive, Sejny uprising, 1919 Polish coup attempt in Lithuania and other intrigues by the Polish side, which made Lithuanians suspicious of their true intentions.

In late August, Lithuanian and Polish missions met in Kaunas to negotiate the situation. While the talks were underway, Polish troops retook Sejny, Augustów, and Suwałki in the south. The Suwałki Region held great symbolic importance for the Lithuanians as a locus of their independence movement. Lithuania mounted military operations in the area. Poland also wanted to seize Vilnius, which it had been forced to abandon during the Soviet offensive in July. The clashes led to a war on a wide front between Poland and Lithuania in September. An intervention was made by the League of Nations, which brokered the Suwałki Agreement on October 7, 1920, which was to have taken effect on October 10. However, on October 9, Polish General Lucjan Żeligowski staged a mutiny, invaded Lithuania and took over Vilnius. Most of the Vilnius and Suwałki Regions would remain under Polish control during the interwar period, and interwar Polish–Lithuanian relations were described as "no war, no peace".

Legacy

The treaty represented a major breakthrough in Lithuania's quest for international recognition. The provision that permitted the return of Lithuanian World War I refugees and prisoners was a welcomed development. However, the Soviet Union did not pay all its reparations and never seriously considered returning the cultural and historical property. Lithuanian politicians and historians continue to seek the return of those items, but the Russian government claims that they are lost.

Modern Belarusian historiography regards the treaty, especially the cession of territories of modern Belarus to Lithuania (primarily Hrodna, Shchuchyn, Lida, Ashmyany, Smarhon, Pastavy, Braslaw but also the contemporary Vilnius Region with Vilna) as a unilateral act by the Soviet authorities that disregarded the national interests of the Belarusian people and was aimed at immediate military and political gains.

Some historians have asserted that if Poland had not prevailed in the Polish–Soviet War, Lithuania would have been invaded by the Soviets, and would never have experienced two decades of independence. Despite the Soviet–Lithuanian Peace Treaty, Lithuania was very close to being invaded by the Soviets in summer 1920 and being forcibly incorporated into that state, and only the Polish victory derailed this plan.

The bilingual treaty was signed in two copies of equal power and the Lithuanian copy, which prior to the 1940 occupation of Lithuania was first evacuated to Sweden and later to Canada by the Lithuanian diplomat Vytautas Jonas Gylys, was found in 2021 and was transferred to the Lithuanian Central State Archive.

References

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Stražas, A. S. (Fall 1996). "Lithuania 1863–1893: Tsarist Russification and the Beginnings of the Modern Lithuanian National Movement". Lituanus. 3 (42). The Lithuanian regions of Suwałki brought forth a large number of scholars, writers, poets and public figures of both a nationalist orientation and belonging to various social ideologies.
Eidintas, Alfonsas; Vytautas Žalys; Alfred Erich Senn (September 1999). Ed. Edvardas Tuskenis (ed.). Lithuania in European Politics: The Years of the First Republic, 1918–1940 (Paperback ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. p. 85. ISBN 0-312-22458-3.
Ладысеў, У.Ф. (2006). "Станаўленне беларускай нацыянальнай дзяржаўнасці ў XX стагоддзі (метадалагічны аспект)". Заходні рэгіён Беларусі вачыма гісторыкаў і краязнаўцаў: зборнік навук (PDF) (in Belarusian). Гродна: ГрДУ. pp. 5–10. ISBN 985-417-834-X.
^ Alfred Erich Senn, The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918–1921, Slavic Review, Vol. 21, No. 3. (Sep., 1962), pp. 500–507.: "A Bolshevik victory over the Poles would have certainly meant a move by the Lithuanian communists, backed by the Red Army, to overthrow the Lithuanian nationalist government... Kaunas, in effect, paid for its independence with the loss of Vilna."
Alfred Erich Senn, Lietuvos valstybes... p. 163: "If the Poles didn't stop the Soviet attack, Lithuania would fell to the Soviets... Polish victory costs the Lithuanians the city of Wilno, but saved Lithuania itself."
Antanas Ruksa, Kovos del Lietuvos nepriklausomybes, t.3, p. 417: "In summer 1920 Russia was working on a communist revolution in Lithuania... From this disaster Lithuania was saved by the miracle at Vistula."
Jonas Rudokas, Józef Piłsudski – wróg niepodległości Litwy czy jej wybawca? (Polish translation of a Lithuanian article) "Veidas", 25 08 2005: "defended both Poland and Lithuanian from Soviet domination"
Antanavičius, Ugnius. "Kanadoje laimingo atsitiktinumo dėka rastas 1920 m. Lietuvos sutarties su Sovietų Rusija originalas". 15min.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 4 July 2021.

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