U.S. Recognizes Soviets: Diplomacy After Turmoil
President Franklin Roosevelt formally recognized the Soviet Union on November 16, 1933, ending 16 years of American refusal to acknowledge the Bolshevik government. The United States was the last major Western power to establish diplomatic relations with Moscow. Previous presidents had demanded that the Soviets pay tsarist-era debts, stop promoting revolution in America, and guarantee religious freedom for Americans in Russia. Roosevelt settled for vague Soviet promises on all three points. His motives were pragmatic: the U.S. economy needed new export markets during the Depression, and Japan's aggression in Manchuria made a counterbalance in Asia strategically useful. The first Soviet ambassador, Alexander Troyanovsky, arrived in Washington in January 1934. The debt issues were never resolved. The relationship lurched between cooperation and confrontation for the next 58 years.
November 16, 1933
93 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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