“Slovak Question” in the Foreign Policy Perception of the Western Democracies (March — September 1939)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15407/uhj2023.06.192Keywords:
“Slovak question”, Great Britain, France, USA, international relations, diplomatic contacts, de facto recognition, press, geopolitics., “Slovak question”, Great Britain, France, USA, international relations, diplomatic contacts, de facto recognition, press, geopoliticsAbstract
The purpose is a comprehensive analysis of the “Slovak question” vision of the leading Western countries on the eve of World War II with the involvement of archival materials, published sources and the press of that time.
The methodological ground is the principles of historicism, comprehensiveness, and consistency. The problem-chronological, comparative, and synchronous methods were broadly used.
Scientific novelty is determined by the absence of specialized scientific works devoted to this issue in Ukrainian and foreign (except Slovak) historiography.
Conclusions. The Western democracies condemned the liquidation of Czechoslovakia by Germany and Hungary and considered the proclamation of the Slovak state as an element of this process. However, in early May, Great Britain modified its position and de facto recognized the Slovak state. France did the same in mid-July. In diplomatic circles in the spring and summer of 1939, the status of Slovakia was considered temporary. There were predictions that Slovakia would be divided between its neighbours, transferred to Hungary, or annexed by Germany completely. British and French consuls’ reports and the Western press emphasized the subordination of Slovakia to Berlin and criticized the political development of the country. The Slovak government contacted the Czechoslovak emigrants in France through intermediaries. British diplomacy interpreted these contacts as an attempt to establish positive relations with Western powers. The USA’s position toward the Slovak state was consistently negative. The American government did not distinguish the difference between the status of the Czech and Moravian lands and Slovakia. Americans were the first who supported the plans of Czechoslovak emigration led by E. Beneš to restore the status quo. Attempts by Slovak diplomats to change the situation in their favor failed. Under pressure from the Germans, the Slovak state took part in the aggression against Poland, which finally destroyed all hopes of establishing relations with Western democracies. Great Britain and France joined the American interpretation and began to consider Slovakia as a territory occupied by Germany.
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