| Original caption: “The Berlin-Moscow Non-Aggression Pact was signed by Reich Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop and Russian Foreign Minister Molotov. Our picture shows Foreign Minister Molotov signing the pact. At left, Reich Foreign Minister von Ribbentrop, Herr Stalin, Under Secretary of State Gauss, Counsellor Hilger and Ambassador Count von der Schulenburg.” Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov (March 9, 1890 – November 8, 1986), seated, signs the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact in Berlin. Standing, from left to right, are German Undersecretary of State Friedrich Wilhelm Gauss (November 26, 1881 – July 17, 1955) Head of the Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, looking at the camera; Soviet Dictator and Premier Joseph Stalin (December 18, 1878 – March 5, 1953); Reichsminister of Foreign Affairs Joachim von Ribbentrop (April 30, 1893 – October 16, 1946); diplomat Gustav Arthur Hilger (September 11, 1886 – July 27, 1965); Molotov; and Ambassador Friedrich-Werner Graf von der Schulenburg (November 20, 1875 – November 10, 1944). On August 23, 1939, Soviet Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vladimir Potemkin (October 19, 1874 – February 23, 1946), waited at the Moscow Airport for Joachim von Ribbentrop, Foreign Minister of Nazi Germany. He warmly greeted the former champagne salesman and then whisked him away for a clandestine meeting at the Kremlin. Waiting to receive the emissary were Soviet strongman Josef Stalin and his granite-faced foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov. They concluded what became known as the Nazi-Soviet Nonaggression Pact. Included were provisions governing the transfer of raw materials from the Soviet Union in exchange for manufactured goods from Germany. But, more importantly, the pact was a protocol establishing each signatory’s sphere of influence. This included Poland. Hitler and Stalin did not merely intend to partition their neighbor, they meant to wipe the country off the map. The Germans would begin to close the vise on September 1, advancing to Brest-Litovsk. The Soviets would close the eastern jaws on September 17 until Poland was gobbled up. As an added inducement for Stalin’s compliance, Hitler agreed that Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Bessarabia, which was on the eastern edge of Romania, would be included in the Soviet sphere of influence. The pact was signed at 0200 Hours on August 24, 1939. The 2 dictators not only sealed Poland’s fate but set in motion a chain of events that would soon engulf the globe in World War II. Bottles of champagne were opened to toast the historic moment. Stalin raised his glass to Hitler’s health. “A fine fellow,” remarked the Soviet dictator. Yet, 21 months later the pact would prove to be just another scrap of paper, for Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union would collide in a titanic struggle that was to become the greatest land war in history. Photo by Heinrich Hoffmann (September 12, 1885 – December 16, 1957), Hitler’s official photographer. | |
| Image Filename | wwii0753.jpg |
| Image Size | 366.36 KB |
| Image Dimensions | 2537 x 1717 |
| Photographer | Heinrich Hoffmann |
| Photographer Title | Heinrich Hoffmann Presse |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | August 24, 1939 |
| Location | |
| City | Moscow |
| State or Province | Moscow |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Archive | United States Holocaust Memorial Museum |
| Record Number | 95889 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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