Robber plans of the aggressor. Participation of Mongolia in World War II as a factor in victory Help of Mongolia to the USSR during the war

Mongolia tried more than the Americans for the Victory, which many still did not even suspect.

Each country that participated in the Second World War is proud of its contribution to the Great Victory over the fascist coalition in 1945. Today, even history experts are trying to deny Mongolia’s active participation in that war. Meanwhile, it served as an important and unique factor for the undoubtedly difficult triumph of the USSR.

“Humble Mongols” are not inclined to shout about their merits; they do not make Oscar-winning films about their “saving influence on the entire course of the war.” About the fact that for Mongolia the losses in this war were no less severe. And in comparison with the “military giants” then the participation of the MPR was truly a feat!

Just one of the facts: at the front in 1943-45, every fifth horse in the Soviet army was a “Mongolian”. Which was a very important circumstance during that war!

On the eve of June 22, 1941, the RKKA rifle division was assigned 3,039 horses. But in the German “Wehrmacht” there were even more - according to the staff, their infantry division had over 6,000 (six thousand) horses. In total, the Wehrmacht used more than one million horses at the time of the invasion of the USSR, 88% of which were in infantry divisions.

Unlike cars, horses, as a draft force, then had a number of advantages - they moved better off-road and on conditioned roads, did not depend on fuel supplies (and this is a very big problem in military conditions), they could get by on pasture for a long time, and they themselves sometimes they were some kind of food.

By the beginning of the war, the number of horses in the Red Army was 526.4 thousand. But by September 1, 1941, there were 1 million 324 thousand of these four-legged ungulates in the army. And with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the USSR found itself with the only third-party source of horses - Mongolia.

In addition to the fact that the Mongolian People's Republic was a Soviet bridgehead against Japanese Manchukuo, it also played, without a doubt, a major role in maintaining the necessary mobility of the Soviet army during the Great Patriotic War

Mongolia is a nomadic country and there were more horses, essentially wild, freely grazing in the steppes, than people. Deliveries of horses from Mongolia began already in 1941. And from March 1942, the Mongolian authorities began the planned “procurement” of horses for the USSR.

During the four years of the war, 485 thousand “Mongolian” horses were supplied to the Soviet Union. According to other sources - a little more than 500 thousand.

It is not for nothing that General Issa Pliev, who fought in cavalry-mechanized groups from 1941 to 1945, from Smolensk, through Stalingrad to Budapest and Manchuria, wrote later: “... an unpretentious Mongolian horse next to a Soviet tank reached Berlin.”

Another 32 thousand Mongolian horses – i.e. 6 wartime cavalry divisions were transferred to the USSR as gifts from Mongolian Arat peasants. In fact, in 1943-45, every fifth horse at the front was a “Mongolian”. The MPR literally tore off its meat and wool.

But the Mongolian Lend-Lease was not limited to just hardy horses. A major role in supplying the Red Army and the civilian population during the war was played by the supply of canned meat from the United States - 665 thousand tons. But Mongolia supplied almost 500 thousand tons of meat to the USSR over the same years. 800 thousand half-poor Mongols, which was exactly the population of the Mongolian People's Republic at that time, gave us a little less meat than one of the richest and largest countries in the world.

During the war, gigantic hunting raids regularly took place in Mongolia - once carried out by the nukers of Genghis Khan in preparation for large campaigns - but in 1941-45, herds of animals were driven straight to the railway stations. This mobilization of resources made itself felt - in the winter of 1944, famine began in Mongolia, just like in the rear areas of the warring USSR; in those years, a 10-hour working day was officially introduced in the Mongolian People's Republic.

Throughout the war, another strategic war commodity – wool – came to our country from the Mongolian steppes. Wool is, first of all, soldier's overcoats, without which it is impossible to survive in the trenches of Eastern Europe even in summer. At that time, we received 54 thousand tons of wool from the USA, and 64 thousand tons from Mongolia. Every fifth Soviet overcoat in 1942-45 was “Mongolian”.

Mongolia was also an important source of raw hides and furs. Deliveries of fur coats, fur hats, mittens and felt boots began already in the first fall of the war. By November 7, 1941, several Soviet infantry divisions from reserves preparing for a counteroffensive near Moscow were fully equipped with Mongolian winter uniforms.

Mongolia was also the only industrial source of tungsten available to the USSR during the war years, the most refractory metal on Earth, without which it was impossible to make shells capable of penetrating the armor of German “Panthers” and “Tigers”.

In 1942-45, the Mongolian Arat aviation squadron and the Revolutionary Mongolia tank brigade, created with funds from the Mongolian People's Republic, fought on the Soviet-German front. Of course, several dozen fighters and tanks look pale against the general background. But in the east of our country, where the USSR was forced to maintain a million-strong force against Japan throughout the war, the Mongols already played a completely strategic role.

In 1941-44, the size of the armed forces of the Mongolian People's Republic was increased fourfold, and a new law on universal conscription was adopted, according to which all men and women of Mongolia were obliged to perform military service. During the Great Patriotic War, non-belligerent Mongolia spent over 50% of the state budget on its armed forces.

The increased Mongol troops became an additional counterweight to the Japanese Kwantung Army. All this made it possible for the USSR to take additional forces from the Far East, several divisions, which were already a noticeable size even on the scale of the huge Soviet-German front.

In August 1945, every tenth Mongolian took part in the Soviet-Japanese War. Five Mongolian divisions, together with Soviet troops, fought their way to the Great Wall of China on the far outskirts of Beijing.

We consider this war to be quick and easy with few losses against the backdrop of the monstrous carnage of the Great Patriotic War. But for Mongolia, with a population of only 800 thousand people, this was on a completely different scale - every (every!) Mongolian male of military age took part in the war with the Japanese.

Here, in terms of “mobilization tension,” Mongolia surpassed the Stalinist USSR. In percentage terms, the losses suffered by Mongolia that August 1945 are equal to those of the United States in the entire Second World War. So for our Mongol allies, the Soviet-Japanese war was neither easy nor painless.

Tags: ,

Plan:

1 Khalkhin Gol
2 The Great Patriotic War
3 Manchurian operation
4 Results

Introduction

Mongolia during World War II was an ally of the USSR, providing it with material assistance in the fight against Germany and directly taking part in hostilities against Japan.

1. Khalkhin Gol

Due to extremely strained relations with the Chinese authorities and open territorial claims on the territory of Mongolia by the puppet state of Manchukuo created by Japan, a Special Corps of Soviet troops was stationed in Mongolia since 1936, successively commanded by division commanders I. S. Konev and N. V. Feklenko. When the Japanese 6th Army invaded Mongolia on May 11, 1939, the USSR took its side under an agreement with Mongolia. In September 1939, during the battles on the Khalkhin Gol River, the Soviet 1st Army Group and Mongolian units under the command of Georgy Zhukov won a victory. The USSR, Japan, the puppet state of Manchukuo and Mongolia signed an agreement to cease hostilities.

2. Great Patriotic War

On June 22, 1941, a joint resolution was adopted by the Presidium of the Small Khural, the Council of Ministers of Mongolia and the Presidium of the Central Committee of the MPRP, which expressed support for the Soviet Union. Economic assistance from Mongolia consisted of the transfer of funds, winter clothing, food, livestock, and the acquisition of a tank column and squadron.

A relief fund for the Soviet army was created in Mongolia. In October 1941, the residents of Mongolia sent a train with gifts of 15 thousand sets of winter uniforms, about 3 thousand parcels worth more than 1.8 million tugriks. 587 thousand tugriks were transferred in cash to the State Bank of the USSR. By April 1943, 8 trains with food and uniforms worth more than 25.3 million tugriks were sent from Mongolia. At the beginning of 1945, a train of gifts consisting of 127 carriages was sent.

On January 16, 1942, fundraising began for the purchase of tanks for the Revolutionary Mongolia tank column. Residents of Mongolia donated 2.5 million tugriks, 100 thousand US dollars and 300 kg of gold to Vneshtorgbank. By the end of 1942, 53 tanks (32 T-34 and 21 T-70) were delivered to the Naro-Fominsk area of the Moscow region. On January 12, 1943, a Mongolian delegation led by Marshal Khorlogiin Choibalsan arrived in the USSR and presented tanks to the 112th Red Banner Tank Brigade.

In 1943, a fundraiser was organized to purchase a squadron of Mongolian Arat aircraft. In July 1943, 2 million tugriks were transferred to the account of the People's Commissariat of Finance of the USSR. On August 18, Stalin expressed gratitude to Mongolia. On September 25, 1943, at the field airfield of Vyazovaya station, Smolensk region, the transfer of the squadron to the 2nd Guards Regiment of the 322nd Fighter Aviation Division took place. Heroes of the Soviet Union N.P. fought as part of the air squadron. Pushkin (First squadron commander), A. I. Mayorov, M. E. Ryabtsev. Mongolia also took over the clothing and food supply of the tank column and squadron until the end of the war.

In March 1942, the Mongolian authorities adopted a resolution on the purchase of horses at specially established state prices. During the war, more than 500 thousand horses were delivered from Mongolia to the USSR. Participants in the war noted the unpretentiousness and endurance of Mongolian horses: “At first we thought that such small horses would not carry soldiers with full equipment... Having traveled difficult military roads on Mongolian horses, we were convinced that they were strong, did not know fatigue and were unpretentious in food. In the short breaks between battles, they themselves plucked the grass, gnawed the bark of trees and were always ready to fight.”

Another area of assistance from Mongolia was the strengthening of its own armed forces. The size of the army was constantly increasing, increasing by 3-4 times by the end of the war; Mongolia spent up to 50% of budget expenditures on its army and militia. The Mongolian armed forces were seen as an additional deterrent against the Kwantung Army in addition to the troops of the Soviet 17th Army, which Mongolia granted the right to deploy throughout the war.

In addition, Mongolia sought to reduce the import of goods from the USSR by developing certain types of production (footwear, leather, wool, cloth products).

3. Manchurian operation

On August 10, 1945, Mongolia declared war on Japan, sending 80 thousand people to the front to participate in the Manchurian operation. These forces (mainly cavalry units) were included in the combined cavalry-mechanized group under the command of Soviet General I. A. Pliev and took part in battles with the Japanese-Manchurian troops in August 1945. Then 72 Mongol soldiers and officers died. Three Mongolian military personnel were awarded the title of Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic.

4. Results

One of the important results of participation in the war for Mongolia was the recognition of its independence.

In February 1945, at the Yalta Conference, it was agreed that "the status quo of Outer Mongolia (Mongolian People's Republic) must be maintained." The Kuomintang Party, which ruled China, regarded this as maintaining the provisions of the 1924 Sino-Soviet agreement, according to which Outer Mongolia was part of China. However, the USSR announced that the Yalta agreement should be interpreted differently: the presence of the words “Mongolian People’s Republic” in the text means, in the opinion of the Soviet Union, Churchill and Roosevelt’s recognition of the independence of Mongolia.

In August, the USSR and China entered into an agreement in which China agreed to recognize Mongolia on the condition that the Mongols themselves do not object to secession from China. In October 1945, a plebiscite was organized in Mongolia, as a result of which the majority of residents spoke in favor of the country's independence. On January 6, 1946, China confirmed that it recognizes the independence of Mongolia.

Sources

Without a little finger there is no fist, or the star of Marshal Zhukov // Krasnoyarsk worker, May 8, 2003

Literature

History of the Second World War 1939–1945. in 12 volumes. - M.: Military Publishing House, 1973-1982. T. 11.
Semenov A.F., Dashtseren B. Squadron “Mongolian Arat”. - M., Military Publishing House, 1971
Popel N.K. Brigade “Revolutionary Mongolia”. M., DOSAAF, 1977.

download
This abstract is based on an article from Russian Wikipedia. Synchronization completed 07/14/11 03:55:19
Similar abstracts:

The help of the Mongolian people exceeded Lend-Lease supplies!

Few people know that the first country to officially declare support for the Soviet Union after the start of the Great Patriotic War was Mongolia. The meeting of the Presidium of the People's Khural and the Central Committee of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party took place on the first day of the war, June 22, 1941. It was unanimously decided: to provide comprehensive assistance to the Soviet people in the fight against fascism.
Mongolia helped the Soviet Union, first of all, with commodity supplies. A very important assistance was the transfer of 500,000 Mongolian horses to the USSR - strong, hardy, unpretentious animals. Yes, World War II was a war of engines, but horses were very actively used by all the warring parties - both in cavalry and especially as draft power. Horses at the platoon and company level were often the only means of redeploying artillery, ammunition and other troops - there were not enough trucks!

An entire tank column was built with funds raised by Mongolian citizens! At the same time, all tanks received their own names: “Great Khural”, “From the Council of Ministers of the MPR”, “Sukhe Bator”, “Marshal Choibalsan”, “Khatan Bator Maksarzhav”, “Mongolian security officer”, “Mongolian Arat”, “From the intelligentsia MPR" and so on. Further more! The Mongols transferred more than 2.5 million rubles and over 300 kg of gold to the Vneshtorgbank of the USSR. These funds were used to build the Mongolian Arat aviation squadron.

To the Prime Minister of the MPR Marshal Choibalsan. On behalf of the Soviet government and myself, I express my heartfelt gratitude to you and, in your person, the government and people of the Mongolian People's Republic, who raised two million tugriks for the construction of a squadron of Mongolian Arat combat aircraft for the Red Army, waging a heroic fight against the Nazi invaders. The desire of the working people of the MPR to build a squadron of “Mongolian Arat” combat aircraft will be fulfilled,” Joseph Stalin, telegram dated August 18, 1943.

For the USSR, Mongolia was practically the only supplier of sheepskin, from which officers' sheepskin coats were sewn. While the Nazis were freezing near Moscow and Stalingrad in their half-woolen “feldgrau,” Soviet soldiers and officers felt comfortable in sheepskin coats from Mongolia. Huge volumes of Mongolian wool were also supplied to the USSR, from which overcoats for soldiers were made. Echelon after echelon of food supplies went to the USSR. According to experts, Mongolia supplied more wool and meat to the USSR than the United States under Lend-Lease! Here is a list of what was sent in one of the trains from Mongolia to the USSR in November 1942:
“Fur coats - 30,115 pcs.; felt boots - 30,500 pairs; fur mittens - 31,257 pairs; fur vests - 31,090 pcs.; soldier belts - 33,300 pcs.; woolen sweatshirts - 2,290 pcs.; fur blankets - 2,011 pcs.; berry jam - 12,954 kg; goitered gazelle carcasses - 26,758 pieces; meat - 316,000 kg; individual parcels - 22,176 pcs.; sausage - 84,800 kg; oil - 92,000 kg.” - from the book “Squadron of the Mongolian Arat”, M., 1971.
But there were dozens of such echelons! The Mongols were so zealous in collecting parcels for the soldiers of the Red Army that in 1944, famine occurred in a number of regions of the country - all food was sent to the USSR.
Look at the road Ulaanbaatar - Biysk. It is trampled by millions of heads of cattle, which were driven by Mongolian arats to the largest in the USSR, and probably in the world, the Biysk meat-packing plant. “Biysk Meat Canning Plant” processed up to 2000 HEAD OF CATTLE DAILY into stew throughout the war years.
American stew was exotic at the fronts, which is why they remembered it. Native “Biyskaya”, made from Mongolian meat, everyday life. It is simply unknown how the USSR would have fed the front without the help of the people of Mongolia.
During the war, Mongolia voluntarily and freely cleared out its food resources so much that in 1946 a serious famine began in their country. They had to be saved.

The Mongols sincerely supported the Soviet Union not only with commodity supplies. Several thousand volunteers from Mongolia fought in the Red Army. Using their skills as hunters or riders, they became snipers, scouts or fought in cavalry units. And in August 1945, the Mongolian army joined the Far Eastern formation of the Red Army and participated in the defeat of Japan. Every tenth soldier in the Far East was a Mongol

Unfortunately, the assistance of Mongolia and the entire Mongolian people to the Soviet Union is greatly underestimated today. We know a lot about Lend-Lease supplies, but we forget about the support of our eastern neighbor.
But “the unpretentious Mongolian horse reached Berlin next to a Soviet tank,” General Pliev wrote in his memoirs. Thank you, Mongol brothers!

RUSSIA AND MONGOLIA

Historical significance of Mongolia's participation
in the Second World War.

With the attack of Nazi Germany on the USSR on June 22, 1941, the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet people began, which lasted about four years. In December 1941, the Pacific War began between Japan and the United States.

The interests of the anti-fascist struggle required the urgent creation of an anti-Hitler coalition. The ruling circles of the USA and England officially notified the Soviet government of their readiness to provide assistance. Thus, the anti-Hitler coalition was created. The MPR resolutely sided with this coalition.

On June 22, 1941, a joint meeting of the Presidium of the Mongolian Parliament and the country's government was held, at which the attitude of the Mongolian people to the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union was clearly defined. It declared its loyalty to the obligations assumed under the Protocol on Mutual Assistance, concluded between the MPR and the USSR on March 12, 1936. The decisions of the highest state authorities noted that the most important and fundamental task of the MPR is the task of providing all possible assistance to the peoples of the Soviet Union in their the struggle against fascist Germany, because without Victory over fascism, which threatened to enslave all the peoples of the world, the further free and successful development of the MPR is impossible.

The Mongolian people enthusiastically accepted this call. A wave of rallies and meetings swept across the country, at which a sincere desire was expressed to help the Soviet people. To organize the work of creating a special fund and sending gifts to Soviet soldiers at the front, a Central Commission was formed under the Government of the country in September 1941. Local commissions were also created in each aimag.

Money, gold and silver items and other valuables, warm clothes (fur coats, felt boots, fur vests, quilted jackets, overcoats, scarves, mittens, etc.), food (meat, sausages and confectionery, butter) were contributed to the Red Army Relief Fund , canned food, jam, berries, mushrooms, vodka, etc.).

The movement to provide assistance to the Soviet people covered all segments of the population and became truly massive. Brigades for the procurement of furs and meat were organized locally. On the initiative of Mongolian women, hundreds of circles worked on knitting and making warm clothes for Soviet soldiers. Many medical workers and ordinary people voluntarily became donors. Youth and trade union organizations organized subbotniks, the proceeds of which were contributed to the fund to help the Soviet people. Workers of many enterprises, refusing days off and regular vacations, worked overtime, exceeded monthly and quarterly plans, and donated the products produced and the money earned during this time to the relief fund. They spared nothing to achieve the Victory of the Soviet people over Nazi Germany and ensure peace. In all the nomadic camps, in all the houses and yurts, gifts were prepared for the front-line soldiers. Every worker considered it his duty to send to the front what he could and had.
The Mongolian people provided the Soviet soldiers not only with material, but also with moral assistance and support. From all over the country, workers, cattle breeders, representatives of the intelligentsia, students of secondary schools and technical schools, soldiers of the people's army sent thousands of collective and individual letters to the Soviet government, soldiers, commanders of units of the Red Army, and in response received many letters from Soviet people.

The prepared gifts were delivered to the front by representatives of the Mongolian people in eight echelons. In total, during the war years, the workers of the Mongolian People's Republic sent gifts totaling 65 million tugriks to the Volkhov, Kalinin, North-Western and Western fronts.
One of the most effective forms of assistance was the acquisition of military weapons at the expense of the Mongolian people and their transfer to the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union. A tank column was created, which was built with funds raised by the population of Mongolia. January 12, 1943 A tank column called “Revolutionary Mongolia”, which included 53 tanks, was solemnly transferred by the MPR delegation to the 112th Order of the Red Banner tank brigade. The column traveled a glorious battle path from the Moscow region to Berlin.

In 1943, the Mongolian Arat air squadron was also built with funds raised by the population of Mongolia. The ceremonial transfer of the squadron, consisting of 12 La-5 combat aircraft, took place on September 25, 1943 at a field airfield near the Vyazovaya station, Smolensk region. Pilots of the Mongolian Arat squadron participated in many offensive operations of the troops of the Kalinin, Western and 1st Baltic fronts, showing courage and heroism in the battles for the liberation of the territory of Belarus, Lithuania, East Prussia and Poland from the German fascists.

Along with this, the Mongolian population sold a significant number of horses for the needs of the Red Army. This work was carried out throughout the country as a major campaign of political importance, thanks to which the annual plans for the purchase of horses were always exceeded. Mongolian cattle breeders not only sold, but also began a movement to donate the best horses to Soviet soldiers. During the war years, arats-cattle breeders sold 485 thousand and gave over 32.5 thousand horses. At the end of the war, work was organized to purchase horses and breeding cattle for donation to collective farms in the liberated areas.

Thus, Mongolia made its concrete contribution to the defeat of Nazi Germany.

As you know, based on the decisions of the Crimean Conference, a program for the democratic structure of the post-war world was developed. The final decisions on Far Eastern issues were made there. The heads of the three Allied Powers signed the Agreement on the Far East, which provided for the USSR's obligation to enter the war against Japan. As one of the most important conditions, the clause “Maintaining the status quo of Outer Mongolia” (MPR) was included in the Agreement on the Far East. As is known, status quo is a term of international law used to designate any factual or legal situation that existed or exists at a certain moment, the preservation of which is in question.
Thus, this meant that the USA, England and the USSR actually recognized the independence and sovereignty of the Mongolian People's Republic.

As you know, after the Victory of the Mongolian Revolution of 1921. The government of the country addressed all countries with a declaration in which it stated its desire to establish friendly relations with all countries. The US and European governments have not responded to the Mongolian government's repeated peace proposals. The Beijing government not only did not want to do anything in this direction, but also tried in every possible way to complicate the relationship between the two countries. Under these conditions, the decisive factor in Mongolia’s foreign policy was the strengthening of relations with Soviet Russia, which had developed in the joint struggle against the White Guards. On November 5, 1921, an Agreement on the Establishment of Friendly Relations was signed between the Government of Mongolia and the Government of the RSFSR. By agreement, both states mutually recognized their governments as the only legitimate ones, which was an example of the recognition of governments according to the traditional de jure form. Thus, Soviet Russia recognized Mongolia as an independent state and established diplomatic relations with it at the level of plenipotentiary missions.

However, the position of Soviet Russia regarding Mongolia was closely related to the “Chinese factor.” On May 31, 1924, an agreement on general principles for resolving issues between the USSR and China was signed in Beijing, the 5th article of which read: “The Government of the USSR recognizes that Outer Mongalia is an integral part of the Republic of China and respects the sovereignty of China.”

Under these conditions, the Mongolian leadership took urgent measures aimed at strengthening the country's state independence. On June 15, 1924, the establishment of a republican system in the country was announced. The First Great People's Khural, held in November 1924, adopted the Constitution of the country and legislatively established the republican system, independence and sovereignty of the Mongolian People's Republic.

Therefore, the decision of the Crimean Conference to maintain the status quo of the MPR was of great international significance. Recognition of the state independence of the MPR by the states of the Allied Powers was the result of the fact that Mongolia, from the first days of the World War, resolutely stood on the side of the Allied Powers.

The defeat and surrender of Nazi Germany did not yet end the Second World War. In the Far East, in the Pacific Ocean, Germany's ally, militaristic Japan, continued to conduct military operations. The Second World War could not end without the defeat of the militaristic forces of Japan.

By decision of the Crimean Conference, the Allied Powers began preparing for war against Japan. On June 26, 1945, the governments of the United States, England and China sent Japan an ultimatum, which went down in history as the Potsdam Declaration."

However, the Japanese government not only rejected the Potsdam Declaration, but also continued its policy of prolonging the war. In the spring and summer of 1945, general mobilization into the armed forces was carried out in Japan, Korea and Manchukuo. By the beginning of August 1945, near the border of the Soviet Union and the Mongolia, the Japanese command concentrated a large strategic group of Japanese troops. The Soviet Union, based on its obligations adopted at the Crimean Conference, declared war on Japan on August 8, 1945. On August 10, 1945, the Presidium of the Small Khural and the Government of the MPR announced that the MPR declared war on Japan.

The combat operations of the Soviet army against Japanese troops unfolded simultaneously on a front length of about 5 thousand km. The battles were attended by troops of the Transbaikal, 1st and 2nd Far Eastern Fronts, as well as the river, sea and air military forces of the USSR in the Far East. From August 9 to August 23, the Soviet army completely defeated Japanese troops and liberated Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, Southern Sakhalin and the islands of Syumushu and Paramushir from the Kuril Islands group. The Soviet Union played a major role in the defeat of Japanese militarism and won a decisive victory in the defeat of the Kwantung Army. It must be emphasized that the naval blockade and massive aerial bombing by the United States played an important role in the defeat of Japan.

The troops of the Mongolian Army carried out operations in close cooperation with the troops of the Trans-Baikal Front. 4 cavalry divisions, an armored brigade, an air division and a communications regiment of the Mongolian Army opposed Japan in two main directions: Dolonnor-Zhehe and Kalgan. In the first week of the war, the troops of the Mongolian army marched 450 km, liberating the city of Dolonnor and other cities and villages. The units that liberated the city of Zhanbei took the fortification on the Kalgan Pass in fierce battles on August 19-21. Having overcome enormous difficulties, the army fought closer to the sea. For the first time in the 20th century, the armed forces of Mongolia, together with Soviet troops, conducted military operations on the territory of another state, liberating the peoples of China from the enslavement of Japanese invaders. On September 2, 1945, in Tokyo Bay, on board the American battleship Missouri, the Japanese side signed an act of unconditional surrender, which meant the end of World War II.

Thus, during the Second World War, the MPR took a strong and principled position on the side of the United Nations. The fact that during the Second World War the Mongolian people consistently and steadily fought against fascism and militarism, for peace and freedom of peoples, favored the further strengthening of the sovereignty of the Mongolian People's Republic.

As a result of the exchange of special notes between the foreign ministers of China and the USSR and negotiations held in August 1945 in Moscow between the delegations of the Soviet Union and China, the government of the latter agreed to recognize the Mongolian People's Republic as a sovereign and independent state within the then existing borders after holding a plebiscite in the MPR . Due to the fact that 100 percent of the votes of citizens who took part in the national plebiscite were cast for the state independence of the Mongolian People's Republic, on January 5, 1946, the Chinese government was forced to recognize the independence of the Mongolian People's Republic. On February 13, 1946, diplomatic relations were established between both states.

In February 1946, a Treaty of Friendship and Mutual Assistance was concluded between the MPR and the USSR. At the same time, an Agreement on Economic and Cultural Cooperation was signed between the MPR and the USSR. The Treaty and Agreement served as the basis for all subsequent agreements between the MPR and the USSR and determined the development of Mongolian-Soviet cooperation for an entire historical period until the conclusion of a new treaty in 1966.

In order to have the opportunity within the UN to fight together with all peace-loving states for a constructive solution to pressing international problems in the interests of world peace, the Government of the Mongolian People's Republic, starting in June 1946, repeatedly applied for admission to the United Nations. Emphasizing the active participation of Mongolia in the Second World War, the Government of the MPR, in its address to the UN Secretary-General, stated its confidence that “neither the Security Council nor the General Assembly will forget about this participation of the Mongolian people in the common cause of the United Nations and will treat favorably application of the Mongolian People's Republic for its admission to the UN." It must be emphasized that the legitimate request of the MPR met with sympathy and approval from the majority of UN members.

All this was a major victory for the consistent foreign policy of the MPR, the result of the unyielding will of the Mongolian people for an independent state existence. The MPR emerged from World War II politically stronger, the prestige and authority of the Mongolian state increased, and its international position strengthened.

Ch. Dashdavaa
Doctor of Historical Sciences
The original article was published in the bulletin of the Moscow-Ulaanbaatar center No. 6-7 (63-64)

Mongolia was the first country to volunteer to help the Soviet Union in the fight against Nazi Germany. Mongolian volunteers fought as part of the Red Army, and aid to Mongolia in goods was comparable in volume to Lend-Lease.

The first allies of the USSR

The first allies of the Soviet Union in the fight against Nazi Germany were neither Great Britain nor the USA. The Tuvan Republic and Mongolia were the first to respond with an offer of assistance to the USSR.

Already on June 22, 1941, on the first day of the war, a joint meeting of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party, the Presidium of the Small State Khural of the MPR and the Council of Ministers of the MPR was held in Mongolia.

It was decided to provide all-powerful assistance to the Soviet Union.

In terms of diplomatic agreements, this was due to the fulfillment of the obligations of the Protocol on Mutual Assistance between the MPR and the USSR, adopted on March 12, 1936.

The decision taken at the highest level was enthusiastically greeted by the Mongolian people. A series of rallies and mass demonstrations took place across the country. The Mongols recognized the Great Patriotic War as their own, and their contribution to the overall Victory was priceless.

Every fifth horse in the Red Army was Mongolian

Mongolian horses, unpretentious and hardy, were indispensable on the war fronts. Apart from Mongolia, only the United States had such horse resources, but, firstly, transporting American horses was associated with a number of difficulties, and secondly, the Soviet Union was simply unable to purchase the required quantity from private owners in the United States.

Thus, it was Mongolia that became the main supplier of horses for the Red Army.

Today, when talking about the war, horses are rarely remembered, but they were the main draft force of the Red Army, without them the redeployment of armies would have been impossible. Before the appearance of motorized units and formations in the Red Army, cavalry was the only operational-level maneuverable means.

In the second half of the war, the valeria made a breakthrough deep into the enemy’s defenses and formed an external front of encirclement. In the case when the offensive took place along highways of acceptable quality, the cavalry could not keep up with the motorized formations, but during raids on dirt roads and off-road conditions, the cavalry did not lag behind the motorized infantry.

But the cavalry also had a drawback: it was manpower and suffered losses.

During the first year of the war, the Soviet Union lost almost half of its horse population. In June 1941, the Red Army had 17.5 million horses at its disposal; by September 1942, there were 9 million of them left, and this included young animals, that is, horses that were not capable of “service” due to their age.
Supplies of horses from Mongolia began from the very beginning of the war; in March 1942, the Mongols began systematically “procuring” horses for the needs of the front. As a result, Mongolia supplied 485 thousand horses to the Soviet Union, and 32 thousand Mongolian horses were given to the USSR as gifts by Mongolian Arat peasants.

Thus, approximately 500 thousand “Mongolian women” fought on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War. General Issa Pliev wrote: “... an unpretentious Mongolian horse next to a Soviet tank reached Berlin.”

According to later estimates, every fifth horse in the Red Army was Mongolian.

Tank column. more than 50 pieces!

The Mongols “invested” in the cause of Victory not only with horses, but also helped the Red Army with equipment. Six months after the start of the war, on January 16, 1942, a fundraiser was announced in Mongolia to purchase tanks for a tank column.

The Mongols brought literally everything to the bank. 2.5 million tugriks, 100 thousand US dollars, 300 kg were transferred from Mongolia to Vneshtorgbank. gold items.
The funds raised were used to purchase 32 T-34 tanks and 21 T-70 tanks.

The formed column was called “Revolutionary Mongolia”. On January 12, 1943, Marshal Choibalsan himself arrived to hand it over to the Red Army units. Each Mongolian tank was named: “Great Khural”, “From the Council of Ministers of the MPR”, “From the Central Committee of the MPRP”, “Sukhe Bator”, “Marshal Choibalsan”, “Khatan Bator Maksarzhav”, “Mongolian Chekist”, “Mongolian Arat” , “From the intelligentsia of the MPR”, “From Soviet citizens in the MPR”, “From the Small Khural”.

Aviation assistance

Mongolia also helped the Red Army make up for the aviation shortage. In 1943, funds began to be collected in Mongolia for the acquisition of the Mongolian Arat aviation squadron.

By July 1943, 2 million tugriks had been collected.

On August 18, Joseph Stalin personally expressed gratitude to the leadership of the MPR for the assistance provided in the formation of the squadron: “To the Prime Minister of the MPR, Marshal Choibalsan. On behalf of the Soviet government and myself, I express my heartfelt gratitude to you and, in your person, the government and people of the Mongolian People's Republic, who raised two million tugriks for the construction of a squadron of Mongolian Arat combat aircraft for the Red Army, waging a heroic fight against the Nazi invaders.

The desire of the working people of the MPR to build a squadron of Mongolian Arat combat aircraft will be fulfilled.”

Humanitarian aid came in endless caravans

The Mongols also helped the Red Army with food, clothing, and wool. Already in October 1941, the first train with gifts to the soldiers of the Red Army was sent from Mongolia. He carried 15,000 sets of winter uniforms, about 3,000 individual gift parcels totaling 1.8 million tugriks. Also, the State Bank of the USSR received 587 thousand tugriks in cash for expenses.

During the first three years of the war, eight trains were sent from Mongolia.

The book “Squadron “Mongolian Arat”, published in 1971, provides an approximate list of what the Mongols sent to the front in only one of the echelons in November 1942: sheepskin coats - 30,115 pieces; felt boots - 30,500 pairs; fur mittens - 31,257 pairs; fur vests - 31,090 pcs.; soldier belts - 33,300 pcs.; woolen sweatshirts - 2,290 pcs.; fur blankets - 2,011 pcs.; berry jam - 12,954 kg; goitered gazelle carcasses - 26,758 pieces; meat - 316,000 kg; individual parcels - 22,176 pcs.; sausage - 84,800 kg; oil - 92,000 kg.

The funds collected by the Mongols were equal in volume to the level of supplies under Lend-Lease, and this once again confirms the unparalleled self-sacrifice of the Mongols. In the winter of 1944, famine even began in the Mongolian People's Republic.

Volunteers from Mongolia in the Red Army

The exact number of Mongolian volunteers who took part in the Great Patriotic War has not yet been established, but historians agree that up to 500 Mongols took part on the Eastern Front. They fought in cavalry and sapper units; the Mongols, being good hunters, were snipers.

The Mongolian army, strengthened and trained over the years of the war, became a serious counterweight to the Kwantung Army. Thanks to the armed forces of friendly Mongolia, the Soviet Union was able to redeploy several divisions from the Far East to the Eastern Front

After the end of the Great Patriotic War, in August 1945, every tenth Mongolian took part in the Soviet-Japanese War.