The Big Three—Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and U.S. President Harry Truman—met in Potsdam, Germany, from July 17 to August 2, 1945, to negotiate terms for the end of World War II. The major issue was the question of how to handle Germany. Despite numerous disagreements, the Allied leaders, the United States, Britain, France, and the Soviet Union, did manage to conclude some agreements at Potsdam. They disarmed Germany, all aspects of German industry that could be utilized for military purposes were to be dismantled; all German military and paramilitary forces had to be eliminated; and the production of all military hardware in Germany was forbidden. Also Germany had to adopt democracy. They also wanted a reconstitution for the German Government and the Allied Control Commission was going to run the country during the interregnum.
One of the most controversial matters addressed at the Potsdam Conference dealt with the revision of the German-Soviet-Polish borders and the expulsion of several million Germans from the disputed territories. In exchange for the los territory Poland received a large amount of territory from Germany and departed Germans out of that territory. This was also done by other countries in which German people lived. In addition the Potsdam negotiators approved the formation of a Council of Foreign Ministers that would act on behalf of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China to draft peace treaties with Germany’s former allies.
The Potsdam Conference is also known for President Truman’s July 24, 1945 conversation with Stalin; the President informed the Soviet leader that the United States had successfully detonated the first atomic bomb on July 16, 1945. This situation made negotiations challenging. The leaders of the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union, who, despite their differences, had remained allies throughout the war, never met again collectively to discuss cooperation in postwar reconstruction.
One of the most controversial matters addressed at the Potsdam Conference dealt with the revision of the German-Soviet-Polish borders and the expulsion of several million Germans from the disputed territories. In exchange for the los territory Poland received a large amount of territory from Germany and departed Germans out of that territory. This was also done by other countries in which German people lived. In addition the Potsdam negotiators approved the formation of a Council of Foreign Ministers that would act on behalf of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and China to draft peace treaties with Germany’s former allies.
The Potsdam Conference is also known for President Truman’s July 24, 1945 conversation with Stalin; the President informed the Soviet leader that the United States had successfully detonated the first atomic bomb on July 16, 1945. This situation made negotiations challenging. The leaders of the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union, who, despite their differences, had remained allies throughout the war, never met again collectively to discuss cooperation in postwar reconstruction.