Xinjiang’s Aid to the USSR during World War II in 1941–1942 and Why It Was Terminated
https://doi.org/10.21603/sibscript-2025-27-6-1065-1074
Abstract
The peoples of the Chinese province of Xinjiang aided the USSR during the Great Patriotic War of 1941– 1945. The article describes the organization, content, and termination of this support. This issue has remained outside the scope of historic research, firstly, because the archival sources remained classified for many years and, secondly, because of the Sino-Soviet split during the 1960s to the 1980s. However, despite the complex historical background of the Russian (Soviet)-Chinese relations in the first half of the 20th century, the Soviet policy towards Xinjiang was built on good neighborliness, mutual respect, and mutually beneficial economic cooperation. As a result, the peoples of Xinjiang gave the USSR selfless assistance and support in its battle against the fascist aggression. The research relied on newly identified sources from the Russian major archives, as well as on recently published memoirs and monographs.
Keywords
Great Patriotic War,
World War II,
aid,
peoples of Xinjiang,
China,
Xinjiang,
Soviet Union,
Nazi Germany
About the Author
Valery A. Barmin
Altai State Pedagogical University
Russian Federation
Competing Interests:
Russian Federation
Barnaul
Scopus Author ID: 58153659500
Competing Interests:
The author declared no potential conflict of interests regarding the research, authorship, and / or publication of this article.
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Barmin V.A. Xinjiang’s Aid to the USSR during World War II in 1941–1942 and Why It Was Terminated. SibScript. 2025;27(6):1065-1074. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.21603/sibscript-2025-27-6-1065-1074
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