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Why did the Soviet Union create the Warsaw Pact in 1955?
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20th-century international relations
American naval scholar Alfred Thayer Mahan, undated photo.
The Soviet Union established the Warsaw Pact in May 1955 primarily as a response to the admission of West Germany into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) earlier that same month.12
Beyond this immediate trigger, the alliance served several strategic purposes for the Soviet leadership under Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolay Bulganin:
- Consolidation of Power: It was a systematic effort to strengthen Soviet control over its satellite states in Eastern Europe.1
- Military Integration: The treaty provided a formal framework for a unified military command and the permanent garrisoning of Soviet military units within the territories of member states.1
- Diplomatic Leverage: It functioned as a bargaining tool in 20th-century international relations, intended to remain in effect until a broader East-West collective-security agreement could be reached.1
By formalizing this alliance, the Soviet Union sought to counter the Western alliance system and solidify its influence across the Eastern bloc.13