The treaty nominally preserved Latvian sovereignty while granting the USSR military basing rights that directly enabled the Soviet occupation and annexation of Latvia in 1940.
Key Facts
- Date signed
- October 5, 1939
- Ratification date
- October 11, 1939
- Latvian signatory
- Vilhelms Munters, Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Soviet signatory
- Vyacheslav Molotov, Commissar of Foreign Affairs
- League of Nations registration
- November 6, 1939
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, the Soviet Union gained a free hand over the Baltic states. Under intense diplomatic and military pressure from Moscow in the autumn of 1939, Latvia was compelled to enter negotiations that would place Soviet forces on its soil under the guise of mutual security.
On October 5, 1939, Latvia and the Soviet Union signed a bilateral Mutual Assistance Treaty in Moscow. While the text pledged respect for each party's sovereignty and independence, the agreement's operative effect was to permit the USSR to establish military bases and station troops inside Latvian territory.
The Soviet military presence secured by the treaty was used as a strategic foothold. In June 1940 the USSR issued an ultimatum demanding full compliance, then launched a military invasion of Latvia. The country was subsequently incorporated into the Soviet Union as the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic by August 1940.
Political Outcome
Treaty signed, granting the USSR the right to establish military bases in Latvia; Latvia ratified on October 11, 1939, effectively surrendering strategic autonomy.
Latvia was an independent sovereign state with full control over its territory.
Soviet Union gained legal right to station troops and maintain military bases inside Latvia, undermining Latvian sovereignty.