#Victory81

🎖 On May 11, 1939, the Red Army and the Mongolian People’s Republic (MPR) launched joint military operation to repel Japanese aggression on the #KhalkhinGol River.

Before the invasion of Mongolia, in 1931, Axis Japan attacked China — the Kwantung Army treacherously occupied Manchuria without declaring war. On October 8, 1931, the Imperial Japanese Air Force attacked Jinzhou, China, carrying out the world’s first aerial bombardment of a civilian city.

In 1936, the Japanese government approved a strategy for expansion in East Asia — the Fundamental Principles of National Policy. This plan envisaged not only the total conquest of China, but also the invasion of Mongolia and the Soviet Union. To pursue these expansionist ambitions, Tokyo secured Berlin’s backing by signing the so-called Anti‑Comintern Pact on November 25, 1936, which marked the beginning of a military‑political alliance between Japan and Nazi Germany.

In June 1937, Japan launched a full‑scale war against China, further straining relations between Moscow and Tokyo. The Japanese were irritated by our country’s assistance to China, prompting the aggressor to stage an anti‑Soviet provocation as a demonstration of force.

In July 1938, tensions escalated into an armed conflict on the Soviet‑Manchurian border. On July 28, Japanese troops occupied the Bezymyannaya and Zaozernaya hills, which lie on the western shore of Lake Khasan. After fierce fighting that followed, Soviet forces drove the Japanese from the heights they had seized.

👉 Soon after, the aggressor launched another provocation. On May 11, 1939, Japanese troops invaded the Mongolian People’s Republic and captured the border area on the western bank of the Khalkhin Gol River.

The Soviet Union, fulfilling its obligations under the 1936 Protocol of Mutual Assistance with the Mongolian People’s Republic, came to the aid of its Mongolian comrades in the fight against the Japanese invaders. Red Army units were deployed to Khalkhin Gol, where they joined efforts with the Mongolian troops. The Soviet‑Mongolian army, under the command of Georgy Zhukov and Khorloogiin Choibalsan, successfully encircled and destroyed the main enemy troops after heavy, brutal fighting.

On August 28, 1939, the Japanese‑Manchurian troops were surrounded and destroyed.

By August 31, 1939, the territory of the Mongolian People’s Republic had been completely cleared of Japanese invaders.

❗️ The defeat of the Kwantung Army was devastating. The victory at Khalkhin Gol had significant and far‑reaching international implications, greatly altering the balance of power on the eve of #WWII. Soviet and Mongolian forces proved their superiority over the enemy Kwantung Army, and the Japanese were forced to abandon their plans for a large‑scale military invasion of our Motherland.

🎙 President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin’s interview to Mongolian Onoodor Newspaper ahead of his visit to Mongolia (September 2, 2024):

During the summer of 1939 — a critical period for Mongolia — the USSR, which remained committed to its duty as an ally under the Protocol on Mutual Assistance of March 12, 1936, immediately responded to the Mongolian government’s request for assistance in repelling the Japanese aggression in the battles on the river of Khalkin Gol. 

Over 10'000 Red Army soldiers and commanders sacrificed their lives in that battle for Mongolia’s freedom and independence. <...>

Today, Russia and Mongolia further develop the invaluable traditions of friendship, good neighbourliness and mutual assistance.

💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova:

The outcome of the clashes at Khalkhin Gol confirmed the effectiveness of the Soviet-Mongolian military-political alliance.

The Soviet Union helped the Mongolian People’s Republic uphold its independence.

The lesson learned by the Japanese aggressors not only prevented further provocations on their part, but also deterred Japan from entering the war against the Soviet Union <...>

(From a briefing by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, Moscow, August 28, 2024)