CHANCERIESTHE DIPLOMATIC ATLAS

United States Recognizes the Soviet Union

1933-11-16

The diplomatic rupture began with a change of government during the First World War. Washington recognized the Provisional Government after the tsar's abdication in 1917, then refused formal dealings with the Bolsheviks who overthrew it. The old Russian ambassador, Boris Bakhmeteff, remained in Washington for years even though the government that had appointed him had disappeared. By 1919 the American embassy in Russia had closed. [1]

Nearly sixteen years of American nonrecognition ended on 16 November 1933. Franklin D. Roosevelt informed Soviet foreign commissar Maxim Litvinov that the United States would establish normal diplomatic relations and exchange ambassadors; Litvinov replied the same day. [2] [3]

Trade had continued through the diplomatic estrangement, while unpaid debts, confiscated American property, and fears of communist activity obstructed official relations. Roosevelt nevertheless saw commercial possibilities in the Soviet market during the Depression and hoped closer contact might help check Japanese expansion in Asia. Litvinov came to Washington to negotiate the terms. [4]

The Soviet government pledged to refrain from interference in American domestic affairs, and the negotiators addressed the legal and religious rights of Americans in the Soviet Union. They left debt settlement for further talks. William Bullitt became the first American ambassador to the USSR, but unresolved debts and renewed arguments over interference soon strained the relationship. [3] [4]

Related Diplomats

  1. Maxim Litvinov [2] [3] [4]

Sources

  1. State Department, Office of the Historian — Russia: recognition and diplomatic relations

    Normal Diplomatic Relations Interrupted, 1917; American Embassy Closed, 1919; Normal Diplomatic Relations Resumed, 1933

  2. Roosevelt to Litvinov — Foreign Relations of the United States

    Document 23; establishment of relations

  3. Roosevelt–Litvinov exchange of letters — American Presidency Project

    Recognition; reciprocal assurances; noninterference

  4. Recognition of the Soviet Union, 1933 — U.S. Office of the Historian

    Earlier disputes; Roosevelt’s aims; negotiations; aftermath

Related Reading

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United States Recognizes the Soviet Union. Chanceries Diplopedia. Record 9bf0272b345136043796. https://chanceries.org/research/history/russia-recognition-3bb9857a23/

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