It's a reminder that up until the end, and due to the unlearned lessons of the First World War: the idea of an America-led victory in the war was not en vogue throughout large swaths of Europe, and most especially scoffed at by the elite. France was largely split between Nazi-sympathizers on one end and Bolshevik-socialists on the other.
Members of The French Resistance on the other hand, likely were more sympathetic to the US/UK effort, but they were in the minority.
There was a lot more fighting on the eastern front.
By their awful actions after the war - during the cold war, by suppressing freedom and wielding a ruthless dictatorship for the next 4 decades, the Russians squandered whatever goodwill they had in France in 1945.
Popular opinion was that the Germans were sure to win the war, with room for Soviet Union to make a dent in sort of Hitler vs. Stalin/Fascism vs. Communism showdown.
History says Russia gutted the German military.
Their greatest contribution to the effort was dying in tragically large numbers, keeping the Nazis busy on the Western front until they ran low on ammunition.
I think Russia did more than any other one nation in defeating Germany during the Second World War.
That’s dramatic. Yeah, we had to stuff the Krauts twice within 30 years’ time.
The fact is, Stalin signed that Non-Aggression Pact in 1939, in the hopes that Germany would defeat England and France.
By the way, to put that American material aid in context:
It’s true Russia only received 7,000 tanks which was only about 15% of their tank strength.....as they’ll be quick to tell you.
What they won’t be so quick to tell you about is that at a time of critical food shortage due to the loss of their breadbasket, Ukraine, America sent them enough food to feed a 10 million man army for the duration of the war.
Remember those brutal winters that killed lots of Germans due to exposure? America sent Russia 15 million pairs of warm felt lined boots.
America supplied 1/3 of Russia’s explosives.
America provided 2,000 locomotives at a time when Russia produced 200.
America provided 100% of aviation fuel early on when Russia refining capacity for high octane aviation fuel was knocked out.
America provided 450,000 trucks - which is THE thing that enabled the Red Army to supply its forces more than just very short distances from their supply bases. This was Germany’s single biggest weakness. They had to rely on horses which are slower, can’t carry as much and require far more manpower. The heavy American Studebaker trucks were what the Russians mounted their iconic Katyusha rockets on.
The list goes on and on. Everything you can imagine - especially industrial equipment. The Russians supplied the Manpower and paid a high price in blood - but there’s no way they survive without America’s vast supplies feeding and equipping them.
That distinction belongs to their one and only undefeated ally, Islam.
We would have bombed them back into the stone age, but they were already there.
causal chain: who made it possible for the Ruskies to help defeat the nazis?
I wonder if the results from the most recent polls are due to the fact that the USSR is no more and that Russia is no longer a communist state and in fact embraced Christianity.
Naziism was defeated mainly by straight men, many of them between the ages of 18 and 20, enriched by “toxic masculinity.”
20% backing the USA
De Gaulle was a preening, arrogant, ungrateful bastard.
In Paris today there is a Train Station named “Stalingrad”.
If contribution equals body count then the Russians did make the greatest contribution.