The Withdrawalof Soviet Troops from Romania, 1955-1958

Eugene Boia In the late 1940sand '1950s the Romanian leaders Communist gained partners international as the Soviets'trust dependable in gradually their abilityto controltheir country. The and demonstrated communism Romania reliable a Union cameto consider friendly communist state, Soviet following Yugoslavia's formal expulsion theCominform June from in especially from Belgrade Bucharest. of to In 1948and the relocation its headquarters of '1 the of StateTreaty and thesummer 955,following conclusion theAustrian in tensions, Romanian the communist leadership a relaxation the East-West the of troopsstationed Romania in broached issueof the removal all Soviet view thesetroopsno longerwere neededto since 1944. ln Bucharest's (which the lines became independent secure communication withAustria as pulled by fallof 1955). stateand the foreign troops out a neutral The Kremlin initially balked the proposal, the eventsof 1956 at but in Hungary demonstrated Moscowcouldrelyon Bucharest maintain that to orderand a communist system, issuesof primary importance the Soviet to leadership. Aftera series diplomatic of exchanges, July1958the Soviets in withdrew forces.Thispaper, basedon published theirmilitary documentary and secondary will sources, analyze Sovietmotives the finalmilitary the for withdrawal the extentof the Romanian and effort toward that realization. As one may surmise,there is debate over the reasonsfor the Soviet decision withdraw military forcesfrom Romania ln The Balkans: to . from Constantinople Communism, to Dennis P. Hupchickassertsthat, in the midstof the October-November Hungarian 1956 revolution,Romania "temporary provided PrimeMinister lmre Nagy refugeafterhe was ousted fromHungary." Hupchick, Romanian Consequently, opines the Communists "theremoval embarked lengthy into negotiations the Soviets with regarding of allSoviet troops in stationed Romania because theyno longer wereneeded to safeguard communications Soviet with forcesin Austria." Thesenegotiations "in culminated 1958withthe withdrawal the garrisons exchange in of forthe Romanians handing Nagyoverto the Soviets execution."l assertion for This implies Bucharest fullcontrol Nagy that had of andhisgroup a quidproquo and existed pullout Soviet between troopsand Nagy's transfer Hungary. to the of "the Thefactis thatafterSoviet KGBlured tanksrolled intoBudapest, Soviet

12

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

of revolutionary lmre Nagyand othermembers the Hungarian cabinet from in Embassy"2 22 November brought on theirasylum theYugoslav and themto government's custody.' not Romania, although in the Romanian sole to collection documents the In his introduction a published of on of Soviet withdrawal, University Bucharestprofessorloan Scurtutakes viewpoint with contemporary issuefrom a patriotic Westernand Eastern communist accounts which disregard the Romanian leadership's in role influencing Sovietdecisionand the hope this actionpresented the the to peoples Eastern Yet, in Europe.a the newlydeclassified documents support the claimthat the Kremlinwas motivated this actionby economicand in political considerations: need to cut military the spending and the desire to win the propaganda campaignin the Cold War and demonstrate the "imperialist postureof the aggressive camp." AlthoughScuftu refersto these Sovietgoals,he contends that the Romanian achievement should have been given its deservedcredit and placed in its proper historical context.s Of course,one should look at the Kremlin's motivesto have Soviet troopsstillstationed Romania lateas the summer 1958,14 in as of yearsaftertheirentrance duringthe closing daysof WorldWar ll. As the Red Army liberatedthe Soviet Union from Axis forces, it crossedthe Soviet frontierand occupiedor freed Poland,Romania, partsof Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. This Soviet intervention to the establishment a bufferzone in EasternEurope led of ostensibly forestallany futureWesternaggression to againstthe Soviet generally followed fairlyeffective Union. This Sovietdomination pattern: a the Red Army occupation; government formation a coalition of with other partiesin whichthe Communists posts,in particular held key government the ministry the interior the of that controlled police; intimidation use of and forceby the police(if necessary by political assisted the RedArmy)against opposition; finally, and expulsion non-Communists the government. of from Consequently, of EasternEuropefell underSovietpolitical all and military control. SinceYugoslavia became Communist itsownanddemonstrated on a modicum obedience JosifV. D. Stalin, general of to secretary the Soviet of CommunistParty,it escapedSoviet militaryoccupation and maintained some measureof independence. The rest of EasternEuropewas firmly under the Soviet iron heel. Most of these governments enjoyedsmall support fromthe population large(as the momentous at changes 1989of 1991 demonstrated). Bilateral military agreements concluded between Moscowand the Communist governments Eastern of Europeenableda Sovietmilitary presence well afterthe end of the SecondWorldWar.6

W F S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A

13

presence Romanian military territory for on The legalbasis the Soviet Treaty PeacewithRomania 10 of of May 1955was theAlliedPowers' until that 1947. Article21 section1 of the treatystipulates February all Upon the cominginto force of the presenttreaty, Allied from Forcesshall,withina periodof 90 days,be withdrawn Romania, subjectto the right of the SovietUnionto keep territory sucharmedforcesas it may needfor on Romanian of of the maintenance the linesof communication the Soviet in Armywith the Sovietzoneof occupation Austria.T does not pass routefromthe SovietUnionto Austria the However, shortest do borders. ln Romania the two countries not havecontiguous as through peacetreaty, December in 1948the SovietUnionand to addition the 1947 accords regulating technical and of the a concluded series bilateral Romania troopson Romanian territory.B of aspects the presence Soviet of logistical legal statusregarding this militarypresenceon The international untilthe signingof the Austrian remained unaltered territory Romanian independence neutrality and StateTreatyon 15 May 1955whichbestowed provided the withdrawal all foreign forcesfrom its for of on Austria, also but unitsof Accordingly, 25 October1955the last of the military on territory.e of in werewithdrawn, endingthe regime occupation Austria.l0 occupation the of As a consequence this treaty, presence Sovietforcesin Romania of justification. no longer had legal Apostol,"at the time first secretary the of According Gheorghe to RomanianWorkers'Partylz(RWP),and scholarssuch as loan Scurtu, the Austrian Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, the time at StateTreatymotivated the prime minister, initiatefeelersregarding the withdrawal Soviet of to forcesfrom Romania.13 developments indicate that Minister Subsequent of DefenseEmil Bodndrag had been designated go-between RWP as the leadership withdrawal. and the Kremlinon the matterof Sovietmilitary Gheorghiu-Dej in Bodndrag thistaskbecause his pastservices delegated of to the SovietUnion,his favorable reputation amongthe Sovietleaders, his government position was one of the threevice-premiers), his (he and thorough knowledge the Russian language.to of Apostol'sexplanation that the AustrianState Treaty served as catalystfor Romaniangovernment's feelers, however,disregardsthe significance another whichpreceded This is the it. international treaty, of

14

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

and Mutual Assistance, the Warsaw Cooperation Treatyof Friendship, or Pact,concluded 14 May 1955. Therewere two reasonsgivenfor the on pact'snecessity. in First, newsituation Europe the created the ratification by for whichprovided the formation a new military of the Parisagreements, of and European Union," second, remilitarized alliance, "Western the a Federal Republicof Germany(West Germany)integrated into the NorthAtlantic (NATO). These developments, Treaty Organization accordingto the "thedangerof another "a preamble, treaty's increased war"and presented threatto the national security the peaceable of At states."ls the sametime, the formation a legallydefined,multilateral alliancelegitimized Soviet of in Europe rationalized Union's and and partly domination influence Eastern presence Hungaryand Romania an indefinite period in for Sovietmilitary provided the of time. Moreover, a formalorganization, WarsawPact as the to Soviet Union an officialcounteruueight NATOin East-West diplomacy. As statedin Article9, the treatywas open to otherstates,irrespective of political regime, who declared themselves theirsocialor willing adhere to to the terms and principles the treaty. The agreement of was bindingfor twentyyears,unlessan all-European systemof collective security should it wouldceaseto be in force. be established. whichcase in Furthermore, Article 5, the signatories by agreed to set up a joint command of their armed forces to take measuresnecessaryfor in strengthening theirdefense capacity orderto safeguard theirachievement, to guarantee inviolability theirfrontiers of the and territories to provide and safeguards againstpossibleaggression.Article6 revealedthe treaty's political character, stipulating for the purpose holdingconsultations that of underthe treaty,the signatories were to establish political a consultative committee, whileArticle7 forbadethem from entering into any coalitions, unions, agreements or to contrary the termsof the treaty. provisions the WarsawPact,Bucharest In spiteof the restrictive of embarkedon its move to get the Sovietsto withdrawtheir troops from Romania.According the memoirsl6 NikitaSergeyevich to of Khrushchev, generalsecretary the SovietCommunist of Party, was Bodndrag it who, as ministerof defense, raised question thepresence Soviettroops first the of in of Romania during Soviet the leader's to Bucharest August visit in 1955.In light published of the recently Romanian documents, Khrushchev's conclusion that the RWP leadership had already discussed matterand Bodnarag the was no doubtchosen introduce subject proved to the accurate.lT Khrushchev justified subject pointing thattherewas little records thatBodn6rag the by out "sharesbordersonly threatto Sovietsecurity interests becauseRomania

W F S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A

15

the nobody across BlackSea from and countries there's withotherSocialist couldnot act writes, Khrushchev Deletant As the us except Turks."18 Dennis in had in on the suggestion 1955"butthe ideaof withdrawal beenplanted ln mostappropriate."lethe mindand he usedit at the timehe regarded his its increase end, we can arguethat this only helpedthe Sovietleadership preparedness takingoverthe in Communists' in confidence the Romanian madeto Khrushchev.2o whichBodndrag a point responsibilities, of of withthe occasion the anniversary the October A shorttimelater, a sent the 1955, Romanians to Moscow highlevel on Revolution 7 November following According someaccounts, to headed EmilBodndrag. by delegation president the of A. and Nikolai Bulganin, Khrushchev reception, a Kremlin with conversation Bodndrag had of Soviet the U.S.S.R., a private Supreme the to him whichtheyinformed that"we havedecided withdraw Soviet during you was takennot because haveraised Thisdecision fromRomania. troops it we the issue,but because consider necessary.""That is, Khrushchev Partyand the Sovietgovernment that it was the SovietCommunist insisted of the to communists perceive necessity suchaction. and not the Romanian in was well received Bucharest;however, to Needless say,this resolution to in situation late1955was not conducive suchan international the existing As it before couldbe implemented. as moretimewas required undertaking yet," and the crimeshavenot beenexposed Stalin's recorded, Khrushchev their"newlook." had to do moreworktoward Soviets campaign on the In the meantime, Sovietsembarked a worldwide to enhancethe in situation, fact to ostensibly improvethe international that in the was convinced image in the world. Khrushchev U.S.S.R.'s "peaceful socialism and camps, the between socialist capitalist competition" peoples peace-loving would emerge victoriousas the model for the for meeting the firsttimeon 28 January1956,the ln everywhere. thisspirit, the of Committee the WarsawPactsubmitted offerof Political Consultative Treatystates;23 pact between NATOand the Warsaw the a non-aggression futureprcposals. by this offerwas ignored the West,as were othersimilar its in Furthermore, this effortof improving image,the new Soviet personality during the zun leadership denouncedthe Stalin cult of himself declared 1956. Khrushchev Congress the CPSU in February of by violentmethodspracticed Stalinwith political the in favor of replacing of the signaled beginning a speech" His talksand consultations.2a "secret EasternEurope,a process processin Soviet-dominated de-Stalinization country. from countryto which differed

16

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

A major step in the direction the dismantling the Stalinist of of structurewas taken in early spring. On 18 April 1956 the Central Committees the memberparties2s of which participated the Information in Bureauof the Communist and Workers'Parties(Cominform) announced the dissolution thisorganization of founded September in 1947(toorganize the exchange experience of and to coordinate activities communist the of parties). The declaredreasonfor this act was that it had completed its function, recognizing "therehave beenchanges recentyearsin the that in international situation" which"haveprovided newconditions the activities for of the Communist and Workers'Parties."26 The Cominform had been a Stalinist vestige and a toolof the Kremlin imposing in communist unity. lts dissolution therefore was an effortto bolsterthe new image of a Soviet Union in pursuitof a peacefulpolicyin international affairsinaugurated earlier the precedingyear: its acceptanceof Austria'sindependence (May 1955)and its rapprochement YugoslaviaJune 1955). But the with ( Cominform's dissolution not mean the beginning a new era, since did of Moscowwould in no way allowa weakening linksbetweenCommunist of parties, the eventsin Eastern as Europewoulddemonstrate the fall. in De-Stalinization meant a loosening repressive of measuresand excessivecontrols,it did not mean freedomfrom Sovietdomination or neutrality the ColdWar for the bufferstatesbordering SovietUnion. in the In neighboring government PrimeMinister Hungary, Communist the of lmre Nagy announced late October1956the reintroduction a multi party in of electoral system,declaredthe country's neutrality, the decisionthat and it wouldwithdraw from the WarsawPact. To the Kremlin these measures threatened the stability the Socialist of camp and the Warsaw Pact and sent military forcesto suppress "counterrevolution."2T the During critical the daysof the Hungarian revolution Moscow released a lengthydeclaration 30 October1956 expressing commitment on its to peaceful and friendly cooperation with the socialist states. In the interest of guaranteeing mutualsecurityof the socialist the countries, Soviet the government expressedits willingness discusswith the Warsaw Pact to membersthe question Soviettroopsstationed the territory these of on of countries. In this the Soviet government proceeded from the general principle that the stationing troopsof one WarsawPact memberon the of territory anothermemberstate "shouldtake place on the basis of an of agreement amongall its participants not only with the agreement and of the stateon whoseterritory thesetroopsare stationed are planned be or to stationed its request."2B particular, expressed readiness enter at it In its to

W S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A F

17

"withthe government the Hungarian People's negotiations of into relevant question the of to Treatyon the and the otherpafties the Warsaw Republic ln of stationing Sovietforcesin Hungary."'n otherwords,the WarsawPact policyaffecting wouldbe ablejointlyto determine each member. members fresh in the background, Kremlin With the eventsin Hungary the with its people's stepsto regulate relations to hastened take morepractical of Europe troopsin Eastern Agreements the stationing Soviet on republics. (Poland 17 December on 1956; with theirhostcountries were concluded on on EastGermany 12 March1957,and Hungary 27 May). On 15 April 1957 an agreementwas signed in Bucharestbetweenthe Soviet and on Romaniangovernments the legal statusof Soviet units stationedin thatthe "temporary troops stationing Soviet of Romania.The accordstated People's Republic in no way affectthe will of on the territory the Romanian in state; the Soviettroopswill not interfere of sovereignty the Romanian People's lt Republic."30provided that affairs the Romanian of the domestic of wouldbe subject and location the Sovietforcesin Romania the strength the between two governments.3l to arrangements had assumedfull controlin the Kremlinby the After Khrushchev in to and of summer 1957,he continued discuss the Politburo with senior cutsand withdrawal troops from the of military commanders issueof military According Khrushchev's to memoirs, issueof WarsawPact countries. the was decided the context the need in of the presence troopsin Romania of to reduce and military expenditures the size of our army,particularly our units stationedin the other Warsaw Pact countries. throughStalinist No longerwere we looking eyeglasses at the dangerposed by capitalism.Of course,we were still but bases, nowthatwe hadmissiles surrounded capitalist by bombs, the socialist as well as atomicand hydrogen camp armedforcesin the world.32 had one of the mightiest that in October1957the Sovietsstartled the lt shouldalso be mentioned intospace. satellite worldby launching Sputnik7, the firstartificial in capabilities and of In this atmosphere self-confidence its military of appears to at doctrine, the beginning 1958Moscow a shiftin its military have made the decisionto reduceWarsawPact forcesand to withdraw announced the a its unitsfrom Romania. On 7 January Sovietsofficially

18

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

Europe.33 Bucharest Consequently, of reduction theirforcesfrom Eastern for on waiting an announcement the statusof the 5 Soviet was anxiously soil. on divisions stationed Romanian Romanian documents show that officially The newly declassified presented the firsttime in a letterto for Khrushchev this Sovietinitiative on in leadership Bucharest 17 April 1958. In the nameof the Communist informed Gheorghiu-Dej of the Central Committee the CPSU,Khrushchev of desireto consulton and the CentralCommittee the RWP of Moscow's of of the issueof "fuftherstationing the Soviettroopson the territory the The Romanian Committee the CPSUwas of People's Republic."3a Central was no convinced of territory that the stationing Sovietunitson Romanian that their presence"servedboth longernecessary, althoughrecognizing Republic People's the interests the Romanian of of and the interests our proved,undeniably, common cause and until recentlyit necessary and consistent with its aim."35 Notwithstanding positive this contribution, international the situation peacefulpolicyof the has experienced noticeable improvement.The a socialist tensions." camp "made possiblea certainthaw in international "in Romania experienced significant achievements socialist building and in people's strengthening its democracy system." Amongthesesuccesses was to a reliable military force"ableto respond the imperialists'challenges, to people's conquests makeits contribution defend Romanian the socialist and to the cause of defending the commoninterests the socialist of camp." But, more than these accomplishments, Sovietletterpointsout that the "imperialistcircles,in order to serue their anti-Sovietpropagandaand to slander the RomanianPeople'sRepublic,make large use of the fact that Sovieftroopsare stillstationedon your country's territory."36 otherwords, In the letter stressed needfor the Soviet and Romanian the leaders Communist to "discuss soonas possible question withdrawing Soviet the as of the armed forces" fromRomanian territory "release relevant presscommunique." and a The Soviets wereconvinced the removal theirtroops that of from Romania would be a new concreteand convincingproof of the peace-loving policyof the SovietUnion,of the Romanian People's Republic and of the socialist camp as a rvhole, of our commontendency obtain,not by words,but by to deeds,a relaxation international of tensions.Suchan act woulddepriveimperialist circles one of theirsignificant of arguments favor of their policyof militarypreparation in

S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A W F

19

and would contribute unitingthe forcesthat pronounce to themselves the safeguarding consolidation peace, for and of for peaceful coexistence amongstates."37 In conclusion, Khrushchev the name of the CentralCommittee the in of CPSUsolicited opinion the CC of the RWp in this matter. the of TheRomanian response camealmost weeklater. 23April a On 1958, Gheorghiu-Dej wrotethat Bucharest sharedthe view that the Soviettroops "seryed on Romanian territory boththe interests the Romanian of People's Republic the interests the common and of causeof the socialist camp." ln lightof the improved international situation, Romanians the expressed their agreement the proposed to withdrawal theseunitsstationed Romania. of in The RomanianCommunist leadership also evaluated the propaganda opportunity the removal thesetroops. "We have no doubtwhatsoever in of that this decision will have a major impactand would be seen by world public opinion a newconcrete as contribution the USSR, the Romanian of of People's Republic and of the entiresocialist camp,to the strengthening of peaceand the lessening tensions international of in relations."3B At the same time, Gheorghiu-Dej and the CentralCommittee of the RWP felt compelled allaythe Sovietconcern, to assuring Kremlin the that the Romanian armed forces "shall fulfil honorably,in whatever circumstances, dutiesincumbent them withinthe socialist the on camp." The letter,however, left to Moscowthe decisionas to the timingof the "meeting discuss to this matter." On 24 May 1958, month a following Khrushchev-Gheorghiu-Dej the Aprilexchange letters, two sidesconcluded Moscow agreement of the in an concerning departure the Soviettroops"temporarily the of stationed the on Romanian territory." The accordregulated official the withdrawal and the transfer all assetsinvolved.Furthermore, established timetable of it a for the departure Soviettroopsfromthe People's of Republic Romania of over the period15 June-15 August1958.According Article in the interests to 4, of the security the member of states the Warsaw of Pact,Romania obligated itself maintain the stateof permanent to in readiness numberof air and a naval bases,formerlyunderSovietcontrol, be placedfor the eventual to use of the jointArmedForcesof the Warsaw Treaty.3e This bilateral accordand its timingmust be viewedin the general contextof Cold War developments. The announcement regarding the

20

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

signingof the Romanian-Soviet accordwas made at the Warsaw Pact meeting Moscow the sameday,24 May 1958. lt was no coincidence in on thatthe Political Consultative Committee the Warsaw of Pactdulyapproved the concluded and the Soviet announcement the withdrawal accord of from Roman At thesametime, ia. decisions werefollowed thecommu these by nique announcing Pactmilitary of 419,000 Soviet andWarsaw cuts menin Eastern Europe.a0 addition the Soviet previously In to cutsof 300,000, announced, thefollowing (1,000), reduction to takeplace:Albania was (23,000), Bulgaria (20,000), (20,000), Romania Czechoslovakia Poland (55,000). and Within a short time, the terms of the accord were fulfilledand periodof "temporary" the fourteen-year stationing Sovietmilitaryunits of on Romanian territory came to a close. On 25 July 1958,the last of the 35,000Soviettroops left Romania,according a Radio Bucharest to announcement.al Thus,what beganin 1955culminated the summerof in 1958,but thiswithdrawal mustbe viewedin its properhistorical context. ln the ColdWar of 1958,the UnitedStatesand the West in general recognized troop that in Europe a wholehadnotchanged strengths Eastern as and that Romania remained vulnerable Soviet to forcesstationed beyond its borders.Justifiably, was unwilling reduceits commitment Washington to to NATOground forces Khrushchev as apparently hoped. lt can be seen, had however, a practical as movein the ColdWar Sovietpropaganda. At the sametime,as Khrushchev records, withdrawal armed the of forces fromRomania was partof the Soviet reexamination the rationale of for troopdeployments Eastern in Europe. "We had to economize our army on "Themaintenance a abroad wellas at home," as Khrushchev. reminisced of division abroad-that on the territory another is, of socialist country-costs twice as muchas the maintenance a division ourownterritory." on of Alongthisline "thestrength a modern of reasoning, notesthat he of armyisn'tdetermined particularly by the number troops by firepower, power.We had of but missile stockpiled greatmanynuclear a weapons, our fire powerhad increased so manytimesandwe couldafford cut backon our ground to troops.Gradually we reduced standing 5 our armyfromabout million 2 % million."a2 to The key foreignpolicyelementwas the unilateral Sovietmove to withdraw limited a number troopsfromEastern of Europe a wholewhich, as Khrushchev a hoped,mightencourage similarresponse from NATO. In any case,this limited would not undermine departure Moscow's military was by now safely advantages the area,wheresocialism in established.

S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A W F

21

Thewithdrawal Soviet of units fromRomania the summer 1958 in of must be placedin the contextof the generaldevelopments Cold War of Europe:the public initiatives the Soviet of Union reduction all foreign for of troopsin Europe,intending inducea reduction the US troopslocated to of in West Germany;the self-confidence the Sovietleadership, of influenced qualitative by the changes the armament the consequently in and changed military doctrine; the Kremlin's reorientation policyfrom Southeastern of Europe Central to Europe, Germany, i.e., whichagainbecame focalpoint a in East-West tensions 1958. As the region's in strategic importance the in ColdWar diminished the Communist and regime Romania in was firmlyin controlof the country, new development the enabledthe SovietUnionto withdraw troops its without beingconcerned aboutRomania's reliability as an allyand at the sametimescorepoints the coldwar propaganda. in This development also affected Romaniaand its leadership.The withdrawal Sovietforcesin 1958enabled of Gheorghiu-Dej takethe first to significant stepsto diminish Sovietinfluence over Romanian foreignpolicy, whileat the sametimemaintain strict control overdomestic developments. This policythe communist regimepursuedsuccessfully until the fall of c o m m u n i s m D e c e m b e1 9 8 9 . in r NOTES
1. DennisP. Hupchick,The Balkans:from Constantinople Communism (NewYork: to P a l g ra v e2 0 0 2 ),4 1 2 . , 2. Vladislav Zubokand Constantine Pleshakov, Inside Kremtin's the Cold War:From Stalin Khrushchev to (Cambridge, and London:HarvardUniversity MA Press,1996),1BO187. av 3 . S e e L e o n i dG i b i a n s k i" , ovi et-Y ugoslR el ati ons the H ungari an evol uti on iS and R of 1956," Cold War lnternational History ProjectBulletin10 (March 1998): 139-1 (143 48 on the date). On Bucharest's role in the Nagy affair, see SergiuVerona,Mititary Occupation and Diplomacy. SoviefTroops Romania,1944-1958 in (Durham, NC. Duke University Press,1992),104-105, and DennisDeletant and Mihaillonescu,Romania and the Warsaw Pact: 1955-1989, Cold War International HistoryProject WorkingPaper# 43 (Washington, D C :W o o d ro w i l s o nIn te rn a ti o nalenter S chol ars, pri l2004),11. W C for A 4. loan Scurtu,"lntroducere," Romania.Retragereatrupelorsovietice.7958 [Roin m a n i a . i th d ra w a l f S o v i e T ro ops. W o t 19581, coordi nati ng torl oanS curtu ucuregti :di (B edi E t u rad i d a c ti c a i e d a g o g i cR .A .,1996), and 68. p d 50 5. "lntroducere,"Romania. Scurtu, in Retragerea trupelor sovietice. 1958,49 and67-68.

6 . F o r th e C o m m u n i sta k eover E astern urope, t of E see R . J. C rampton, astern uE E ropein the Twentieth Century andAfter,2ded. (London and NewYork:Routledge, 1gg7), 211-239.

22

OAHPROCEEDINGS

7 . D o c .2 3 , " T re a ty f P e a cew i th R omani a," February o 10 1947,P ari s,i n R omani a. Retragerea trupelorsovietice.1958, 165. B. Docs.26,27, and 28, in Romania.Retragerea trupelor sovietice. 1958,171-200. 9 . " U n i o n f S o v i e t c i al i st epubl i cs, ni ted i ngdom GreatB ri tai n R o So U K of and N orthern lreland, UnitedStatesof America, the France-Austria: StateTreaty the Re-establishfor me n to f a n l n d e p e n d e n tn d D e m ocratiA ustri a," May 1955,V i enna, n TheA meri can c 15 a i J o u rn a lo f l n te rn a ti o n a la w ,4 9 , no.4, S uppl ement: ci al ocuments L (October Offi D 1955), 1 6 3 , 1 6 8 - 1 6 9 ,d1 9 1 . an 1 0 . R o b e rtL . F e rri n g " T h e A ustri an tateTreatyof 1955 and the C ol d W ar," The , S Western Political 1968): 21, 664. Quarterly no.4 (December 1 1 . D o c . 4 1 , l n te rv i e w , eorghe postol i th l oanS curtu A w Gh and V i rgi ni a al i n, OcC 20 tober 1994,in Romania.Retragerea trupelorsovietice.1958,224-225. 1 2 . T h e o ffi c i a n a me o f th e R omani an ommuni st artyfrom February l C P 1948 unti l 19 6 5 "lntroducere," Rom1nia. 13. Scurtu, in Retragereatrupelorsovietice. 1958,41and 59. 1 4 . D o c .4 1 , In te rv i e w , e orghe postol i th l oanS curtuand V i rgi ni a al i n,20 OcGh A w C tober 1994,in Romania.Retragerea trupelorsovietice.1958,224-225. , 1 5 . " Al b a n i aB u l g a ri aC z echosl ovakiGermanD emocratiR epubl i c, ungary, o, a, c H P la n d ,R u m a n i a U .S .S.R .: re a tyof Fri endshi p, ooperati on Mutual A ssi stance," , T C and 14 May 1955,Warsaw,in TheAmerican Journalof lnternational Law,49, no.4, Supplement: (Oc r O ffi c i aD o c u m e n ts to b e 1 9 5 5), l 194-199. 16. NikitaKhrushchev, Khrushchev Remembers.The LastTestament, trans.and ed. (Boston by StrobeTalbott Little,Brownand Company, and Toronto: 1974),227-228. 1 7 . D o c . 4 1 ,I n t e r v i e w , h e o r g h e A p o s tw ilt h l o a nS c u r t u n d V i r g i n i a d l i n , 2 0O c G o a C tober 1994,in Romania.Retragerea trupelorsovietice.1958,224-225. 18. KhrushchevRemembers. The Last Testament, 227. On the visit and different interpretations regarding location the and contentof discussion the issue,see Verona, on Military Occupationand Diplomacy,80-86. 19. Deletant and lonescu, Romania and the WarsawPact, 14. This pointalso in Verona, MilitaryOccupation and Diplomacy,85. 2 0 . " W e j u s t d i d n ' tw a n t y o u to thi nkw e w ere standi ng rml yon a soci al i st posi ti on fi your troopsare stationed our country.We just want you to know that we only because on s i n c e re l y e l i e v en th e b u i l d i n g f soci al i sm i n fol l ow i ng b i o and pol Maxi st-Leni ni st i ci es, and our peoplerecognize as their leadersand supportus completely. us The development of socialism our countryis not determined pressure in by fromthe SovietUnion"(Khrushchev Remembers. The Last Testament, 228). 2 1 . A s re l a te d n D o c .4 1 , Intervi ew , i Gheorghe postol i th l oan S curtuand V i rgi ni a A w Cr lin,20 October1994,in Romania. trupelor Retragerea sovietice. 1958,225. 22. Khrushchev Remembers.The LastTestament.227.

S O V I E TT R O O P S I T H D R A W R O MR O M A N I A W F

23

"lntroducere," Romania. 23. Scurtu, in Retragerea 44 trupelor 1958, and 62. sovietice. 24. Textof the speechin Keesing's Contemporary Archives, (1955-1956), 14992A', X "SecretSpeech" the Twentieth to Congress the Communist Partyof NikitaKhrushchev, of U in (ed 1 th e S o v i e t n i o n ,2 5F e b ru a ry 956[excerpts], R onal d gorS uny ), The S tructure Gri (NewYorkand Oxford: OxfordUniversity Press, of SovietHistory.Essaysand Documents 3 2 0 0 3 ), 4 0 -3 5 0 2 5 . T h e m e m b e rs e reth e C ommuni st W orkers' arti es B ul gari a, zechosl ow and P of C F , Po R and v a k i a , ra n c e H u n g a ryl,ta l y , l and, omani a, the S ovi et ni on. U 2 6 . " A n n o u n c e me n t th e D i ssol uti on the Informati on ureauof the C ommuni st of on B 18 i on A a n d W o rk e rs ' Pa rti e s , Ap ri l1 9 56," n D ocuments l nternati onalffai rs, 7956(London, Press,1959),377. NewYork,Toronto: OxfordUniversity " 2 7 . O n th e H u n g a ri a n -S o virel ati onshiat thi s ti me,see MarkK ramer, TheS ovi et et p and P ol and: eassessments N ew Fi ndi ngs," R U n i o na n d th e 1 9 5 6C ri s e si n H ungary and History32,2 (April1998):163-214. Journalof Contemporary n 2 8 . " D e c l a ra ti oo f th e So vi etGovernment the Foundati ons the D evel opment on for a n d F u rth e r tre n g th e n i n g F ri endshi and C o-operati onetw een S ovi etU ni onand S of p B the Documents lnternational OtherSocialist States,30 October1956,"in on Affairs, 7956(Lon, : P d o n ,N e w Y o rk T o ro n toO x fo rd Uni versi ty ress,1959),467. 2 9 . t b i d, 4 6 8 . 3 0 . D o c .4 9 ,A c c o rd e tw e en Government the R omani an eopl e' s epubl i and b the of P R c the Government the USSR,15 April 1957 Bucharest, Romania. of in Retragerea trupelor , s o v i e ti c e1 9 5 8 ,2 4 7 . . 31 tbid 32. Khrushchev Remembers. The Last Testament,228. "lntroducere," Romania.Retragereatrupelorsovietice. 33. Scurtu, in 1958,66. 3 4 . D o c .5 7 , N i k i ta . K h ru s hchev, rst-S ecretarythe C C of the C P S U ,to the C C of Fi S of the RWP,Letter,17 April 1958,Moscow, Romdnia. in Retragerea trupelor sovietice. 1958, 273. 35. lbid. s 3 6 . l b i d .( e m p h a s ia d d e d ) 3 7 . l b i d .,2 7 3 -2 7 4 . 38 Doc 58, Gheorghe First-Secretary the CC of the RWP,to CC Gheorghiu-Dej, of of the CPSU,Letter, April 1958,Bucharest, Romania. in 23 Retragerea trupelor sovietice. 1 9 5 82 7 4 - 2 7 5 . , 39. Doc.60, Accordbetween the Ministry the Armed Forcesof the Romanian of Peop l e ' sR e p u b l ia n d t h e D e f e n s e i n i s t eo f t h e U . S . S . R . , 2 M a y 1 8 5 8 , o s c o wa n d D o c . c M r 4 M , 7 3 ,D e c i s i o n f th e C o u n c io f Mi n i sters the P eopl e' s epubl i of R omani a the appl i cao l of R c on t i o no f th eA g re e m e nc o n c l u d e dn Moscow May24, 1958establ i shi ng w i thdraw al t i on the of the Soviet troopsfrom Romania,2l June 1958,Bucharest, Romania. in Retragerea trupelor sovietice. 958, 276-280.and 342-344. 1

24

O A HP R O C E E D I N G S

40. "Communiqu6theMeeting thePolitical on of Consultative CommitteetheWarof in 24 Moscow, Documents lnternational Organization," May 1958, sawTreaty on Affairs, (London, York, University Press, 7958 New Toronto: Oxford 1962), 499.

Archives, (1957-1958), Xl 41. Keesing Contemporary 16350C s The 42. Khrushchev Remembers. LastTestament.221.

EugeneBoia has a B.A.fromCleveland StateUniversity, M.A.fromJohnCarroll a University, earneda Ph.D.from Kent StateUniversity 1991. His dissertain and tion, Romania'sDiplomaticRelations with Yugoslavia the lnterwarPeriod, 1919in Pressin its East European 1941,was published ColumbiaUniversity by Mono' ly g r a p h ss e r i e si n 1 9 9 3 . D u r i n g c t o b e r 1 9 8 5 - J u 1 9 B O e h a d a F u l b r i g h t - H a y s O h grantin Romania, dissertation research and between January and June 1994he grant also had an International Board (IREX)research Research Exchanges & in Romania, Diplomatic workingon "Romania's Relations with Yugoslavia, 19411956." He currently in teaches Civilization, Balkans, courses Western the Twentieth Century Fascism Cleveland at Europe, and European StateUniversity. E - m a i l :e . b o i a @ c s u o h i o . e d u

Proceedings the Ohio Academy of History of 2005

Contents

iii EDITOR'S OTE N PAPERS Failure: The Forty-Year Debate Presidential Address:Explaining War overthe Vietnam R. GARY HESS from Romania, 1955-1958 Troops of 1 1 The Withdrawal Soviet EUGENE BOIA in Era Administrationsthe Progressive Midwest: 2 5 Socialist Municipal A Comparative CaseStudyof FourOhioCities,1911-1915 ARTHUR DEMATTEO E. Land:MobViolence Ohio, in in 45 BlackLynching the Promised - 1916 1877 MARILYN HOWARD K. MiaoYuntai, reforming the the 57 Subverting FrenchStranglehold: Yunnan Railway, 1910-1937 Gejiutin industry and the French THOMAS MCGRATH E. 69 ArthurErnestMorganand the MoraineParkSchool,1916-1927 WATRAS JOSEPH

Editorial Office:The Ohio StateUniversity MarionCampus, Morrill Hall 222, 1465Mt. Vernon Ave.,Marion, 43302-5095 OH Phone:740-725-6249 Fax: 614-292-5817

The Proceedings published is annually the OhioAcademy History. by of Theseare papersthat were presented the annualspringconference. at The academyassumes responsibility statements no for expressed by authors.The authors retaincopyright. rssN 153s-430x

oHto
ACADEMY
OF

HISTORY
Editorial Board JacobDorn WrightStateUniversity Editor Vladimir Steffel OhioStateUniversity

2005