Aggressive USSR in the 1930s

Here's an interesting question. Would anyone other than Trotsky have pushed for an aggressive international foreign policy?
 
I've sometimes thought about this myself and wondered about an ATL where Stalin, rather than Hitler, starts WW2. Perhaps by demanding the annexation of Finland (the USSR's 'sudetenland')?, then various bits and pieces around the USSR before he sends Red Army tanks into Poland - triggering WW2. This would leave the world in the odd situation of Hitler being part of the "allies" against the soviets!

Imagine that photo of the allied leaders at the end of WW2 - except with Rosevelt, Churchill and Hitler! :eek:
 
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wargameing trotskys war

there's an interesting scenario for the operational art of war called TROTSKY'S WAR! http://www.the-strategist.net/RD/scenarii/display_scenario.php?Id=721

I find the idea intriguing and probably merit for it's own game (or at least a hearts of iron expansion sequal/expansion pack).
although I have some issues with the timeline...mainly Abyssinian victory against Italy, early Communist victory against nationalist in china Japanese forfeiture of Formosa, lets just assume that these events actually occurred

how will the war turn out?




Taken from the original by Ben Turner
with updates by Silvanski.
(The Scenario begins on 1st September 1939)

* 1924: Death of Lenin. Trotsky is the chief mourner at his funeral.
* 1925: Stalin banned from Russia.
* 1926: Trotsky established as the new Soviet Leader.
* 1927 onwards: Armaments-lead industrial growth in the Soviet Union.
* 1931: The USSR intervenes in the Manchurian crisis and quickly wrests control of the province from the Japanese. Following threats of war from the West, the USSR hands the province to the Chinese communist party.
* 1932: Fear of the strong Soviet Union causes the German public to elect Hitler with a clear majority.
* 1933: For the first time, Soviet troops openly engage Chinese nationalist forces.
* 1934: Mao Tse Tung undisputed ruler of all China.
* 1935: The USSR gains control of Iran and Afghanistan. The Soviets force Japan to cede Formosa to China.
* 1936: Abyssinian forces armed by the USSR defeat the Italian army. Russia annexes the Baltic republics.
* 1937: The Soviets invade Finland. The West watches on in silence. As Soviet troops approach Helsinki, a Marxist coup takes control and signs an armistice with Russia. Communist forces backed by Soviet "advisors" win the civil war in Spain.
* 1938: Trotsky wants to eradicate what he proclaims as the Great Western Threat. His main objective is to destroy the Polish state and reclaim lost territory. Preparations are carried out in great secrecy.
* 1 September 1939: The USSR invades Poland. The Soviet theory of battle in depth worked out in the 1930's by Tukhachevsky, Yegorov, Uborevich and Yakir proves efficient. The Polish army -hopelessly dispersed because it had to keep an eye on both the Soviets and Nazi-Germany- is unable to stop the Soviet steamroller.
The Polish president Moscicki begs the international community for military aid. At the same time, Soviet forces invade Japanese controlled Korea, and the Chinese enter Indochina.
* Hitler, who had his eyes on Poland sees a legitimate reason to gain what he wants. The Wehrmacht -although very efficient- is not yet ready for a war against the Soviet Union. Much to the dismay of his generals he orders his troops to relieve the Polish lines. The Soviets, not having expected this, decide to eliminate the Nazi threat once and for all.
* The Communists invade Iraq. This endangers British interests in the Middle East and especially British control of the Suez Canal. Winston Churchill, an outspoken opponent of Communism, recommends aiding Germany. "Rather a Nazi in my backyard than a Commie in my kitchen!"
* In a surprising diplomatic move, France and Germany agree terms of non-aggression. This frees up German troops deployed along the border with France.
* Mussolini -the mauling his troops suffered in Abbysinia too fresh in his memory- decides to keep Italy out of the conflict. Plans for an attack on Greece are shelved but the Italian army is put on standby to resist when threatened.
* As French troops are getting ready to leave for the Eastern front, Spain is urged by Trotsky to distract them by invading the South of France. Western leaders convince Portugal to declare war on Spain.
* Soviet and Finnish troops invade Norway and Sweden.
* The conflict spreads as one by one other countries fall victim of Communist expansion.
* Can the unusual European Alliance hold out before American reinforcements arrive to aid in the war against Communism?...


personally, idont think America would intervene in this one, to much sympathy for Communism or at least leftism during the great depression....besides fighting to save Hitlers ass can hardly be considered "a war for democracy"maybe if the soviets refused peace negotiations with the western democracy's after the nazi's fall and continue to push on, maybe then there would be limited american intervention

I guess the same go's for Briton and France...if Trotsky can reign in some of his more zealous ant-colonial clients then the war becomes a bloody grinding slog between germany,italy and japan....germany has an edge with more industrialization and a french non aggression pact
however the trotskyite army is not stalins army...while maybe not haveing the sheer numbers of mecognized vehicles as our timeline, there tanks have radio's , tactics are fleshed out, there competent,well lead and have high moral....
I love reading AH but I've never constructed a timeline...anyone want to help me flesh this out?

as for predictions.....even without american involvment the soviets get batterd hevaly on the flanks by supirior allied naval and amphibious capabilities
absynnia falls within a year....and the japanise lose koria...at least until the refit/train there army for modern war
 
There's one glaring problem that I could see with that timeline. If the Soviet Union invaded Persia and Afghanistan, I would think that Britain and the Allies would intervene, since a Soviet Afghanistan would be a large threat to British India and that the UK already had a lot of oil interests in Persia (Anglo-Persian Oil Company giving the UK an effective monopoly on Persian oil).

I also have doubts about the Chinese Civil War ending so quickly even with Soviet assistance to Mao.

Other than that the pre-war part of the timeline looks good.
 
There's one glaring problem that I could see with that timeline. If the Soviet Union invaded Persia and Afghanistan, I would think that Britain and the Allies would intervene, since a Soviet Afghanistan would be a large threat to British India and that the UK already had a lot of oil interests in Persia (Anglo-Persian Oil Company giving the UK an effective monopoly on Persian oil).

how strict was trotsky on orthodox communesim? because maybe these regiems in place in this countrys werent "communest" per se but merely native anti british and anti colonial upriseings that occured without direct soviet invovment....anti colonialism trumps communisem.
I cant see an abyssinian communest revolution...but i can see trotsky providing the only native leader of africa (haliee sesee) with arms,aa guns,at guns and advisors... anti colonialism is going to attract alot more allies and support in 'the third world' then communisem will

have to run out the door for work
 
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