Allied Communications at Wartime Conferences and the Formation of the United Nations

Author: Tyler Kim

P&P Mentors: Jamie Gemmell, Kelsea Jeon

Introduction

[1] [2]    Prior to the United States’ entry into WWII in December of 1941, the United States maintained a participatory role with the British and other Allies. Although American President Franklin D. Roosevelt initially declared that the United States would remain neutral in what was then a predominantly European war, the United States provided Great Britain the supplies they needed.[1] As the war progressed, this amicable nature between America and Great Britain grew. In August of 1941 American President FDR and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill signed the Atlantic Charter. The charter was based on the Western idealist philosophy that both nations shared and emphasized the need for morality in international politics following the war.[2]Both leaders were eager to cement American support of Britain in the current war and to show that the U.S.-U.K. unity would continue into a post-war world.[3]

However when the Soviet Union joined the Allies in June of 1941, they did not share the same level of unity as the United States and Great Britain held with each other. Tensions were strained due to the various ideological differences and with the USSR’s earlier pact with Nazi Germany. The US and UK had denounced the USSR and its authoritarian leader Joseph Stalin earlier in the war, with American President Franklin Roosevelt publicly naming the Soviet Union, “[a] dictatorship as absolute as any other dictatorship in the world.”[4] Nonetheless, a cautious relationship formed between the nations as the threat of Nazi Germany continued to grow. 

Thesis

            Amidst the turmoil of World War II, the Allied leaders physically united and engaged in communications at the Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam conferences, where they shared a common objective of creating a better postwar world through a new intergovernmental organization. While the Allied nation’s agendas and representatives developed throughout the course of the three conferences, the effect of their cooperation and compromises can be seen today in the function of the United Nations.

Tehran Conference

            The first meeting that the three allied heads of state held was at Tehran, beginning in the shift in mode of communication. By 1943, a unified Allied strategy was lacking and several international matters concerning both present and postwar needed to be addressed. While communications between these nations took place via telegrams and emissaries, direct negotiations were needed if there was to be an Allied victory in a timely manner.[5] Thus, the dominant Allied powers--the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union--met at Tehran, Iran in 1943 for the first time. The conference proved successful: within three days unprecedented levels of negotiation and decisions led to the adoption of a cooperative strategy and the fulfillment of each leader’s various aims.[6]

One of President Roosevelt’s aims was to use the physical conference to strengthen America’s cooperative relationship with the Soviet Union. As a result, Roosevelt privately introduced the possibility for a new international organization of all nations to Stalin.[7] To ensure future collaboration with Stalin as an ally, Roosevelt included the Soviet Union into his vision of the United Nations where four primary nations, the US, Britain, China, and the USSR, would hold major power in order to maintain global peace.[8] The conversation was among the first on the formation of the United Nations, and was met positively by the three world leaders as it was evident that something needed to be done to check against aggressors such as Nazi Germany and the German Empire of WWI. 

Yalta Conference

            After the Axis powers were cornered to the brink of surrender, the second Allied conference at Yalta in February of 1945 allowed for compromise on the shape of postwar Europe. Each nation’s vision of postwar Europe at this conference was less compatible and thus required more compromise. For instance, Poland was of high contention as Stalin wished for a sphere of influence, with Churchill pressing for free and democratic elections, all the while Roosevelt wanted support in the Pacific against Japan.[9] The physical conference allowed for greater compromise as there would be multiple issues at hand which were usable as leverage, whereas telegrams and emissaries would both reduce talking points and the number of countries involved. In the end, annexed areas of Eastern Poland would remain in control of Russia, in return for a promise of free elections in Poland and Soviet participation against the Japanese.[10] As stated by US delegation member James F. Bymes, “it was not a question of what we would let the Russians do, but what we could get the Russians to do.”[11]

One of the largest successes at the Yalta conference was with regards to the creation of the United Nations. Following the unilateral agreement of the establishment and commitment of participation in the United Nations, the primary issue was regarding the structure of the United Nations Security Council. Stalin was hesitant to join the United Nations in fear that capitalist countries would pit against the communist Soviet Union. To protect his ideals, Stalin demanded an absolute veto power that included the ability to prevent certain discussions entirely. Through compromise, it was agreed upon that each of the permanent initial members of the United Nations could veto the actions of the council, but not the procedures regarding the resolutions themselves.[12]

This limited veto power solved a weakness of the earlier League of Nations which was compromised by the fact that members of the League could have been ordered to act in defiance of its own parliament, leading to lowered credibility held by the League’s passed motions. Another fatal flaw of the League of Nations was its lack of representation, as the United States didn’t participate, further reducing its merit.[13] This was solved when the delegates agreed to include the participation of all nation-states in the new United Nations. 

Potsdam Conference - what happens with a lack of communication / why communications are essential

            By the third and final conference at Potsdam in July 1945, various changes to the Allied leaders stressed the diplomatic relationships built over the prior meetings. Most notably, two of the three Allied leaders present at the meeting had changed. Former VP Harry Truman was now the President of the US following the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Clement Atlee became the new Prime Minister of Great Britain after Churchill’s loss during the general election. This swayed relations at the conference: compared to Roosevelt, Truman held a firmer stance on the expansion of communism and attempted to “contain” the Soviet Union by limiting ties with Stalin.[14] The United States’ new “Truman Doctrine” was also supported by British Clement Atlee. The Soviet Union was further ostracized by the Allies. With the surrender of Nazi Germany, there was no longer a common European threat that the Allies could unite against.[15] These conditions resulted in the reduction of open communication, making consensus on postwar reconstruction more difficult. 

            The reduced communication between the USSR and other Allies held grave significance, as the secrecy and tensions would eventually peak to start the Cold War. At the Potsdam conference, Truman only informed Stalin of the United States’ possession of a vague powerful new weapon but had already invited the British to work on the atomic bomb project.[16] The week following the Potsdam conference, the United States used the atomic weapon on Japan. The actual dropping of the atomic bombs infuriated Stalin, who stated that, “Hiroshima has shaken the whole world. The balance has been destroyed.”[17] As the Truman administration and its doctrine intended on using its nuclear weapons to contain soviet expansion, resentment between nations grew into the Cold War’s mass proliferation of nuclear arsenals.

Conclusion:

            Despite the lack of open communication at the Potsdam conference, the development of the United Nations progressed smoothly. As the new organization was the culmination of the three wartime conferences—Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam—the communication exhibited by the three allied leaders’ efforts to create the United Nations became integral to its structure. To start, the Tehran conference established an international shift towards physical communication between leaders. Afterwards, the Yalta conference emphasized the importance of compromise in achieving quality communication. Finally, the Potsdam conference represented an instance where the lack of open communication resulted in increased tensions and reduced collaboration. In conclusion, it is clear that when dealing with others—on any scale—communication can always be an effective solution.

Endnotes

[1] “Lend-Lease and Military Aid to the Allies in the Early Years of World War II.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 11, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/lend-lease.

[2] “The Atlantic Conference & Charter, 1941.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 12, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/atlantic-conf.

[3] Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2021, August 7). Atlantic Charter. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/event/Atlantic-Charter

[4] “U.S.-Soviet Alliance, 1941–1945,” Office of the Historian, accessed August 11, 2021, https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/us-soviet.

[5] “The Big Three.” The National WWII Museum. Accessed August 12, 2021. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/big-three.

[6] “The Tehran Conference, 1943.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 12, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/tehran-conf.

[7] “The Tehran Conference, 1943.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 12, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/tehran-conf.

[8] Roberts, Geoffrey. 2007. “Stalin at the Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam Conferences.” Journal of Cold War Studies 9, no. 4 (Fall): 15. https://www.academia.edu/21831434/Stalin_at_the_Tehran_Yalta_and_Potsdam_Conferences.

[9] Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Yalta Conference." Encyclopedia Britannica, February 18, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/event/Yalta-Conference.

[10] “The Yalta Conference, 1945.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 12, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/yalta-conf.

[11] Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Yalta Conference." Encyclopedia Britannica, February 18, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/event/Yalta-Conference.

[12] Roberts, Geoffrey. 2007. “Stalin at the Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam Conferences.” Journal of Cold War Studies 9, no. 4 (Fall): 25. https://www.academia.edu/21831434/Stalin_at_the_Tehran_Yalta_and_Potsdam_Conferences.

[13] “The League of Nations, 1920.” Office of the Historian. Accessed August 16, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1914-1920/league.

[14] “The Truman Doctrine, 1947.” n.d. Office of the Historian. Accessed August 16, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1945-1952/truman-doctrine.

[15] “The Potsdam Conference, 1945.” n.d. Office of the Historian. Accessed August 16, 2021. https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/potsdam-conf.

[16] Roberts, Geoffrey. 2007. “Stalin at the Tehran, Yalta, and Potsdam Conferences.” Journal of Cold War Studies 9, no. 4 (Fall): 36-38. https://www.academia.edu/21831434/Stalin_at_the_Tehran_Yalta_and_Potsdam_Conferences.

[17] Holloway, David. 1996. Stalin and the Bomb The Soviet Union and Atomic Energy, 1939-1956. New Haven: Yale University Press. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/98/12/06/specials/holloway-stalin.html?TB_iframe=true&height=5157&width=370.8.