Reactions in the Soviet Union
Statement by Molotov (Paris, 2 July 1947)
TextOn 2 July 1947, during the final meeting of the Three-Power Conference in Paris, Viatcheslav Molotov, the Soviet Union Foreign Minister, criticises the Marshall Plan and US imperialism.
‘The Paris Conference' from Pravda (13 July 1947)
TextOn 13 July 1947, the Soviet daily newspaper Pravda publishes a critical report on the work of the Conference on European Economic Cooperation which, at France’s invitation, opened the previous day in Paris in order to review the ways in which the loans granted to Europe under the Marshall Plan have been utilised.
'The Marshall Plan hybrid' from Der Spiegel (20 December 1947)
TextOn 20 December 1947, German weekly Der Spiegel examines the Soviet Union's reaction to the Marshall Plan.
Address given by Paul-Henri Spaak: the USSR’s rejection of the Marshall Plan (Luxembourg, 13 March 1948)
Audio extractOn 13 March 1948, in Luxembourg, Paul-Henri Spaak, Belgian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, delivers an address during which he describes the reasons for the rejection of the Marshall Plan by the Soviet Union and its European satellites.
Cartoon by Illingworth on the USSR’s position regarding the Marshall Plan (23 March 1948)
ImageOn 23 March 1948, British cartoonist Leslie Gilbert Illingworth illustrates Moscow’s reluctance at the idea of seeing the countries of Central and Eastern Europe benefit from the US aid granted under the Marshall Plan. On the right, Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.
'The Marshall Plan and West Germany' from Pravda (17 December 1948)
TextOn 17 December 1948, the Soviet newspaper Pravda criticises the US aid granted to West Germany under the Marshall Plan and deplores the decision taken by the British and American military authorities of the Bizone for an eventual transfer to the Germans of the decision-making authority regarding the ownership of the steel and mining industries in the Ruhr (Law No 75).
‘Two worlds, two paths' from Pravda (1 January 1949)
TextOn 1 January 1949, the Soviet daily newspaper Pravda describes a Europe divided into a capitalist and a socialist sphere and compares the two systems.
Soviet cartoon on US policy towards Europe (3 November 1949)
Image‘The American sledgehammer at work, solving the market problem.' On 3 November 1949, the Soviet periodical Izvestiya criticises the imperialist policy of the American Paul Hoffman, Director of the Economic Cooperation Administration (ECA) established to administer the financial aid granted under the Marshall Plan for Europe.
Cartoon by Ganf on the Marshall Plan (20 July 1950)
Image‘Peace is excluded from paradise.' On 20 July 1950, the Soviet satirical magazine Krokodil denounces the Marshall Plan, portraying it as a dangerous refuge serving the economic, military and religious interests of the West.