Countries that have never started a war. Which European countries did not participate in World War II (06/13/2018)

Instability is growing in the world. Some people seriously believe that World War III is just around the corner. It is not known what kind of war it will be - nuclear, economic, cyber war - but everyone will have a hard time.
Just in case: here are the top 10 countries in which the chance of survival is quite high.

10. Ireland

Ireland practices military neutrality and has not been involved in international military conflicts since the 1930s. If World War III breaks out, Ireland will probably not take part in it.

9. Switzerland

Switzerland has the oldest history of military neutrality established by the Treaty of Paris in 1815. And since then, Switzerland has not participated in any war with other states.

8. Slovenia

Slovenia is intensively and consistently engaged in the development of sources of thermal, solar and hydropower, which in the event of an international conflict will mean its self-sufficiency. It can be assumed that the country will prefer isolationist behavior and will avoid global conflicts.

7. Fiji

The Fiji archipelago in the South Pacific is geographically isolated and therefore fairly safe. And the government of the Republic of Fiji has traditionally kept aloof from international conflicts.

6. Denmark

Denmark is a bit out of our list. On the one hand, it can be drawn into the war because of its participation in the North Atlantic Treaty (on the side of Europe), but on the other hand, it has a trump card in the form of Greenland, an autonomous territory subordinate to the Kingdom of Denmark. The region is apolitical and remote - an ideal place to hide from the war.

5. Austria

According to the Global Peace Index 2017 (Global Peace Index), Austria is in 4th place out of 163 countries. Enough to assess the level of safety of living in this country.

4. Portugal

Portugal is in third place in the Global Peace Index. It is called "an oasis of stability" in the political sense. Far-right populism, which has already hit many European countries, somehow does not reach Portugal. And in general, the country is peaceful, it has not entered into most international conflicts (since World War II).

3. New Zealand

The big pluses of this country: it provides itself with half of the required electrical capacity (thanks to hydroelectric power plants) and has a developed agriculture, so no one will die of hunger. And most importantly - it is quite far from the rest of the world.

2. Canada

Canada is also in the top ten most peaceful countries according to the Global Peace Index. In it, she is in 8th place due to the low level of involvement in internal and international conflicts.

1. Iceland

This is the winner of the rating and number one in terms of non-conflict. Again, remoteness from ordinary participants in military conflicts plays a big role here, so if anything, we go to Iceland.

The Second World War was not only the most terrible tragedy in the history of mankind, but was also the largest geopolitical conflict throughout the development of civilization. Dozens of countries were involved in this bloody confrontation, each of which pursued its own goals: influence, economic gain, protection of its own borders and population.

To achieve their goals, the participants in the Second World War were forced to unite in coalitions. Allied groupings included countries whose interests and goals were most closely intertwined. But sometimes, in order to solve a higher task, even countries that saw the post-war structure of the world in completely different ways united in such blocs.

Who were the main and secondary participants in the Second World War? The list of countries that officially acted as a party to the conflict is presented below.

Axis countries

First of all, let's consider the states that are considered to be the direct aggressors that unleashed the Second World War. They are conditionally called the "Axis" countries.

Tripartite Pact countries

The countries of the Tripartite or Berlin Pact were participants in World War II, who played a leading role among the Axis states. They concluded an alliance treaty between themselves on September 27, 1940 in Berlin, directed against their rivals and defining the post-war division of the world in case of victory.

Germany- the most powerful militarily and economically state of the Axis countries, which acted as the main binding force of this association. It carried the greatest threat and caused the heaviest damage to the troops of the anti-Hitler coalition. She is in 1939.

Italy Germany's strongest ally in Europe. She unleashed hostilities in 1940.

Japan third member of the Tripartite Pact. She claimed exclusive influence in the Asia-Pacific region, within which she fought. Entered the war in 1941.

Minor members of the "Axis"

The secondary members of the "Axis" include participants in the Second World War from among the allies of Germany, Japan and Italy, who did not play a primary role on the battlefield, but nevertheless took part in the hostilities on the side of the Nazi bloc or declared war on the countries of the Anti-Hitler coalition. They belong to:

• Hungary;
• Bulgaria;
• Romania;
• Slovakia;
• Kingdom of Thailand;
• Finland;
• Iraq;
• Republic of San Marino.

States ruled by collaborationist governments

This category of countries includes states occupied during the hostilities by Germany or its allies, in which governments loyal to the Axis bloc were established. It was the Second World War that brought these forces to power. The participants in the Tripartite Pact, therefore, wanted to position themselves in these countries as liberators, not conquerors. These countries include:

Anti-Hitler coalition

The symbol "Anti-Hitler Coalition" is understood as an association of countries that opposed the Axis states. The formation of this allied bloc took place over almost the entire period during which World War II was going on. The participating countries were able to withstand the fight against Nazism and win.

big three

The Big Three are participants in the Second World War from among the countries of the Anti-Hitler Coalition, which made the greatest contribution to the victory over Germany and other Axis states. Possessing the highest military potential, they managed to turn the tide of hostilities, which initially developed not in their favor. First of all, thanks to these countries, World War II ended in triumph over Nazism. The participants in the battles from among the other states of the Anti-Hitler coalition, of course, also deserved the gratitude of all the free peoples of the world for getting rid of the "brown plague", but without the coordinated actions of these three powers, victory would have been impossible.

United Kingdom- the state that was the first to enter into open confrontation with Nazi Germany in 1939 after the latter's attack on Poland. Throughout the war created the greatest problems for Western Europe.

the USSR- the state that suffered the greatest human losses during the Second World War. According to some estimates, they exceeded 27 million people. It was at the cost of blood and the incredible efforts of the Soviet people that it was possible to stop the victorious march of the Reich divisions and reverse the flywheel of the war. The USSR entered the war after being attacked by Nazi Germany in June 1941.

USA- later than all of the states of the Big Three took part in hostilities (since the end of 1941). But it was the entry of the United States into the war that made it possible to complete the formation of the Anti-Hitler coalition, and successful actions in the battles with Japan did not allow it to open a front in the Far East against the USSR.

Minor members of the Anti-Hitler Coalition

Of course, in such an important matter as the fight against Nazism, there can be no secondary roles, but the countries presented below still had less influence on the course of hostilities than the members of the Big Three. At the same time, they made their contribution to the end of such a grandiose military conflict as the Second World War. The countries participating in the Anti-Hitler coalition, each by virtue of their capabilities, gave battle to Nazism. Some of them directly opposed the Axis states on the battlefields, others organized the movement against the invaders, and others helped with supplies.

Here you can name the following countries:

• France (one of the first to enter the war with Germany (1939) and was defeated);
• states of the British;
• Poland;
• Czechoslovakia (at the time of the outbreak of hostilities, it actually no longer existed as a single state);
• Netherlands;
• Belgium;
• Luxembourg;
• Denmark;
• Norway;
• Greece;
• Monaco (despite its neutrality, it was alternately occupied by Italy and Germany);
• Albania;
• Argentina;
• Chile;
• Brazil;
• Bolivia;
• Venezuela;
• Colombia;
• Peru;
• Ecuador;
• Dominican Republic;
• Guatemala;
• Salvador;
• Costa Rica;
• Panama;
• Mexico;
• Honduras;
• Nicaragua;
• Haiti;
• Cuba;
• Uruguay;
• Paraguay;
• Turkey;
• Bahrain;
• Saudi Arabia;
• Iran;
• Iraq;
• Nepal;
• China;
• Mongolia;
• Egypt;
• Liberia;
• Ethiopia;
• Tuva.

It is difficult to underestimate the breadth of the scope of such a grandiose tragedy as the Second World War. The number of participants in the largest armed conflict of the 20th century was 62 countries. This is a very high figure, given that at that time there were only 72 independent states. In principle, there were no countries that this grandiose event did not touch at all, even though ten of them declared their neutrality. Neither the memoirs of the participants in the Second World War or the victims of concentration camps, nor even historical textbooks, can convey the full scale of the tragedy. But the current generation should remember well the mistakes of the past so as not to repeat them in the future.

New countries appear with frightening regularity. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were only a few dozen independent sovereign states on the planet. Today there are almost 200 of them! If a country has already formed, then it is for a long time, so the disappearance of a country is extremely rare. There have been very few such cases in the last century. But if a country falls apart, then it completely disappears from the face of the Earth: along with the flag, the government and everything else. Below are ten of the most famous countries that once existed and prospered, but ceased to exist for one reason or another.

10. German Democratic Republic (GDR), 1949-1990

Established after World War II in a sector controlled by the Soviet Union, the German Democratic Republic was best known for its Wall and its tendency to shoot people who tried to get over it.

The wall was torn down with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990. After its demolition, Germany united and again became a whole state. However, in the beginning, due to the fact that the German Democratic Republic was rather poor, unification with the rest of Germany almost ruined the country. At the moment, everything is fine in Germany.

9. Czechoslovakia, 1918-1992


Founded on the ruins of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, during its existence Czechoslovakia was one of the most vibrant democracies in pre-World War II Europe. Betrayed by Britain and France in 1938 in Munich, she was completely occupied by Germany and disappeared from the world map by March 1939. Later, she was occupied by the Soviets, who made her one of the vassals of the USSR. It was part of the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union until its collapse in 1991. After the collapse, it again became a prosperous democratic state.

This story should have ended there, and, probably, the state would have been intact to this day if the ethnic Slovaks living in the eastern half of the country had not demanded secession into an independent state, dividing Czechoslovakia in two in 1992.

Today, Czechoslovakia no longer exists, in its place there is the Czech Republic in the west and Slovakia in the east. Although, given the fact that the Czech economy is booming, Slovakia, which is not doing so well, probably regrets secession.

8. Yugoslavia, 1918-1992

Just like Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia was a product of the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire as a result of World War II. Consisting mainly of parts of Hungary and the original territory of Serbia, Yugoslavia, unfortunately, did not follow the more intelligent example of Czechoslovakia. Instead, it was something of an autocratic monarchy before the Nazis invaded the country in 1941. After that, it was under German occupation. After the defeat of the Nazis in 1945, Yugoslavia did not become part of the USSR, but became a communist country under the leadership of the socialist dictator, Marshal Josip Tito, leader of the partisan army during World War II. Yugoslavia remained a non-aligned authoritarian socialist republic until 1992, when internal conflicts and intransigent nationalism erupted into civil war. After it, the country broke up into six small states (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia and Montenegro), becoming a clear example of what can happen if cultural, ethnic and religious assimilation goes wrong.

7. Austro-Hungarian Empire, 1867-1918

While all the countries that found themselves on the losing side after the First World War found themselves in an unsightly economic and geographical position, none of them lost more than the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which was gnawed like a roast turkey in a homeless shelter. From the collapse of the once huge empire, such modern countries as Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia emerged, and part of the lands of the empire went to Italy, Poland and Romania.

So why did it fall apart while its neighbor, Germany, remained intact? Yes, because it did not have a common language and self-determination, instead, various ethnic and religious groups lived in it, which, to put it mildly, did not get along with each other. In general, the Austro-Hungarian Empire endured what Yugoslavia endured, only on a much larger scale, when it was torn apart by ethnic hatred. The only difference was that the Austro-Hungarian Empire was torn apart by the victors, while the disintegration of Yugoslavia was internal and spontaneous.

6. Tibet, 1913-1951

Although the territory known as Tibet existed for over a thousand years, it did not become an independent state until 1913. However, under the peaceful tutelage of a number of Dalai Lamas, it eventually clashed with Communist China in 1951 and was occupied by Mao's forces, thus ending its brief existence as a sovereign state. In the 1950s, China occupied Tibet, which grew more and more unrest, until Tibet finally rebelled in 1959. This led China to annex the region and dissolve the Tibetan government. Thus, Tibet ceased to exist as a country and instead became a "region", instead of a country. Today, Tibet is a huge tourist attraction for the Chinese government, even though there is a feud between Beijing and Tibet, due to the fact that Tibet again demands to return its independence.

5. South Vietnam, 1955-1975


South Vietnam was created by forcibly expelling the French from Indochina in 1954. Someone decided that dividing Vietnam into two parts around the 17th parallel would be a good idea, leaving Communist Vietnam in the north and pseudo-democratic Vietnam in the south. As in the case of Korea, nothing good came of it. The situation led to a war between South and North Vietnam, which eventually involved the United States. This war became for the United States of America one of the most devastating and costly wars in which America has ever taken part. In the end, torn apart by internal divisions, America withdrew its troops from Vietnam and left it to itself in 1973. For two years, Vietnam, divided in two, fought until North Vietnam, backed by the Soviet Union, seized control of the country, eliminating South Vietnam forever. The capital of the former South Vietnam, Saigon, was renamed Ho Chi Minh City. Since then, Vietnam has been a socialist utopia.

4. United Arab Republic, 1958-1971


This is another failed attempt to unite the Arab world. The Egyptian president, an ardent socialist, Gamel Abdel Nasser, believed that unification with Egypt's distant neighbor, Syria, would lead to the fact that their common enemy, Israel, would be surrounded on all sides, and that the united country would become super- strength of the region. Thus, the short-lived United Arab Republic was created, an experiment that was doomed to fail from the start. Separated by several hundred kilometers, creating a centralized government seemed an impossible task, plus Syria and Egypt could never agree on what the national priorities were.

The problem would be solved if Syria and Egypt united and destroyed Israel. But their plans were thwarted by the inopportune start of the Six-Day War in 1967, which destroyed their plans for a joint border and turned the United Arab Republic into a defeat of biblical proportions. After that, the days of the union were numbered, and, in the end, the UAR fell apart with the death of Nasser in 1970. Without a charismatic Egyptian president to maintain a fragile alliance, the UAR quickly disintegrated, re-establishing Egypt and Syria as separate states.

3. Ottoman Empire, 1299-1922


One of the greatest empires in the history of mankind, the Ottoman Empire collapsed in November 1922, after a fairly long existence of over 600 years. It once stretched from Morocco to the Persian Gulf and from Sudan to Hungary. Its disintegration was the result of a long process of disintegration over many centuries, by the beginning of the 20th century only a shadow of its former glory remained from it.

But even then it remained an influential force in the Middle East and North Africa, and most likely would have remained so today if it had not participated in the First World War on the losing side. After the First World War, it was disbanded, its largest part (Egypt, Sudan and Palestine) went to England. In 1922, it became useless and eventually collapsed completely when the Turks won their war of independence in 1922 and terrified the Sultanate, creating modern Turkey along the way. However, the Ottoman Empire deserves respect for its continued existence no matter what.

2. Sikkim, 8th century AD-1975

Have you never heard of this country? Where have you been all this time? Well, seriously, how could you not know about small, landlocked Sikkim, nestled safely in the Himalayas between India and Tibet...that is, China. The size of a hot dog stand, it was one of those unknown, forgotten monarchies that managed to hold out until the 20th century, when its citizens realized that they had no particular reason to remain an independent state, and decided to unite with modern India in 1975.

What was remarkable about this small state? Yes, despite its incredibly small size, it had eleven official languages, which probably created havoc when signing road signs - this is assuming that there were roads in Sikkim.

1. Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Soviet Union), 1922-1991


It is difficult to imagine the history of the world without the participation of the Soviet Union in it. One of the most powerful countries on the planet, which collapsed in 1991, for seven decades it has been a symbol of friendship between peoples. It was formed after the collapse of the Russian Empire after the First World War and flourished for many decades. The Soviet Union defeated the Nazis when the efforts of all other countries were insufficient to stop Hitler. The Soviet Union almost went to war with the United States in 1962, an event called the Caribbean Crisis.

After the Soviet Union collapsed after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, it split into fifteen sovereign states, thus creating the largest bloc of countries since the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918. Now the main successor to the Soviet Union is democratic Russia.

More than ten states managed to avoid participation in the main meat grinder of mankind. Moreover, these are not "some" overseas countries, but European ones. One of them, Switzerland, ended up in a Nazi environment. And Turkey, although it joined the alliance against Hitler, did it at the very end of the war, when there was no longer any sense in it.

True, some historians believe that the Ottomans were out for blood and wanted to join the Germans. But the Battle of Stalingrad stopped them.

Spain

No matter how cruel and cynical the dictator Franco was, he understood that a terrible war would not bring anything good to his state. Moreover, regardless of the winner. Hitler asked him to join, gave guarantees (the British did the same), but both warring parties were refused.

But it seemed that Franco, who won the civil war with the powerful support of the Axis, would definitely not stand aside. Accordingly, the Germans were waiting for the return of the debt. They thought that Franco would personally want to eliminate the shameful stain on the Iberian Peninsula - the British military base of Gibraltar. But the Spanish dictator was more far-sighted. He decided to come to grips with the restoration of his country, which was in a sad state after the civil war.

The Spaniards only sent a volunteer "Blue Division" to the Eastern Front. And her "swan song" soon broke off. On October 20, 1943, Franco ordered the "division" to be withdrawn from the front and disbanded.

Sweden

After numerous brutal defeats in the wars of the 18th century, Sweden abruptly changed its course of development. The country embarked on the rails of modernization, which led it to prosperity. It is no coincidence that in 1938, Sweden, according to Life magazine, became one of the countries with the highest standard of living.

Accordingly, the Swedes did not want to destroy what had been created for more than a century. And they declared neutrality. No, some "sympathizers" fought on the side of Finland against the USSR, others served in SS units. But their total number did not exceed a thousand fighters.

According to one version, Hitler himself did not want to fight with Sweden. He allegedly was sure that the Swedes were pure-blooded Aryans, and their blood should not be shed. Behind the scenes, Sweden made reciprocal curtsies towards Germany. For example, she supplied her with iron ore. And also, until 1943, she did not host Danish Jews who tried to escape from the Holocaust. This ban was lifted after the defeat of Germany in the Battle of Kursk, when the scales began to tilt towards the USSR.

Switzerland

German officers during the French campaign of 1940 said more than once that "we will take Switzerland, this little porcupine, on the way back." But this "way back" turned out to be different from their expectations. Therefore, the "porcupine" was not touched.

Everyone knows that the Swiss Guard is one of the oldest military units in the world. Its brilliant history begins at the beginning of the 16th century, when it was the Swiss soldiers who were entrusted with the most precious and honorable thing in Europe - to protect the Pope.

During the Second World War, the geographical position of Switzerland turned out to be completely unfavorable - the country found itself surrounded by the states of the Nazi bloc. Therefore, there was not a single opportunity to completely and completely disown the conflict. So I had to make some concessions. For example, to provide a transport corridor through the Alps or "throw some money" on the needs of the Wehrmacht. But, as they say, the wolves are full and the sheep are safe. At the very least, neutrality was observed.

Therefore, the pilots of the Swiss Air Force now and then entered into battle with German aircraft, then with American ones. They did not care which of the warring parties violated their airspace.

Portugal

The Portuguese, like their neighbors on the peninsula, decided that if there was even the slightest opportunity to avoid participation in the Second World War, then they should use it. Life in the state during the conflict was well described by Erich Maria Remarque in the novel “Night in Lisbon”: “In 1942, the coast of Portugal became the last refuge of fugitives for whom justice, freedom and tolerance meant more than homeland and life.”

Thanks to rich colonial possessions in Africa, Portugal had access to one very strategically important metal - tungsten. It was the enterprising Portuguese who sold it. And, interestingly, both sides of the conflict.

Actually, fears for the colonies - this was another reason why Portugal did not want to intervene in the conflict. After all, then their ships came under attack, which any of the enemy countries would gladly sink.

And so, thanks to the neutrality of Portugal, it managed to maintain power over the African colonies until the 70s.

Turkey

Historically, Turkey has had sympathies for Germany. But during the Second World War, the former Ottoman Empire decided to declare neutrality. The fact is that the country decided to follow the precepts of Ataturk to the end and once again abandon imperial ambitions.

There was another reason as well. In Turkey, they understood that in the event of hostilities they would be left face to face with the troops of the allied countries. Germany will not come to the rescue.

Therefore, a strategically correct and beneficial decision for the country was made - to simply make money on a world conflict. Therefore, both sides of the conflict began to sell chromium, which is necessary for the production of tank armor.

Only at the end of February 1945, under pressure from the allies, Turkey nevertheless declared war on Germany. This was done, of course, for show. In fact, Turkish soldiers did not participate in real hostilities.

Interestingly, some historians (mostly back in Soviet times) believed that Turkey was, as they say, "at a low start." The Turks were waiting for the advantage to definitely be on the side of Germany. And if the USSR lost the Battle of Stalingrad, then Turkey was ready to attack the USSR, joining the Axis in 1942.

Can you immediately name the countries with which our country fought the most? Surprisingly, we now have no particular conflicts with the countries at the top of this list. But with the countries with which we have, as it were, been in a cold war for a long time, we have never waged direct battles.

(Total 8 photos)

Sweden

We fought a lot with the Swedes. To be exact, it is 10 wars. True, for about two centuries we have had quite normal relations with the Swedes, but now it’s generally scary to think that the Swedes were our enemies.

However, back in the 12th century, Sweden and the Novgorod Republic fought for a sphere of influence in the Baltic states. For a long time the struggle took place for Western Karelia. With varied success. Many famous Russian tsars were in conflict with the Swedes: Ivan III, Ivan IV, Fedor I and Alexei Mikhailovich.

Peter I radically changed the balance of power, as you may have guessed. It was after the defeat in the Northern War that Sweden lost its power, and Russia, on the contrary, strengthened the status of a great military power. There were several more attempts to take revenge on the part of Sweden (Russian-Swedish wars of 1741-1743, 1788-1790, 1808-1809), but they ended in nothing. As a result, Sweden in the wars with Russia lost more than a third of its territory and ceased to be considered a powerful power. And since then, we actually have nothing to share.

Turkey

Probably, if you ask any person on the street with whom we fought the most, he will name Turkey. And it turns out to be right. 12 wars in 351 years. And small periods of thaw were replaced by new aggravations in relations. And even quite recently there was a situation with a downed Russian military aircraft, but, thank God, this did not lead to the 13th war.

There were enough reasons for bloody wars - the Northern Black Sea region, the North Caucasus, the South Caucasus, the right of navigation on the Black Sea and its straits, the rights of Christians in the territory of the Ottoman Empire.

Officially, Russia is considered to have won seven wars, while Turkey has won only two. The rest of the battles are the status quo. But the Crimean War, in which Russia was not formally defeated precisely by Turkey, is the most painful in the history of Russian-Turkish wars. But then again, the wars between Russia and Turkey (Ottoman Empire) led to the fact that Turkey lost its military power, but Russia did not.

It is interesting that the USSR, despite all this rich history of confrontations with Turkey, provided this country with all kinds of support. Suffice it to recall what kind of friend Kemal Ataturk was considered for the Union. Post-Soviet Russia also had good relations with Turkey until recently.

Poland

Another eternal rival. 10 wars with Poland, this is according to the minimum hands. Starting with the Kyiv campaign of Boleslav I and ending with the Polish campaign of the Red Army in 1939. Perhaps it was with Poland that the most hostile relations remained. Just that same invasion of Poland in 1939 is still a stumbling block in relations between the two countries. For a time, Poland was part of the Russian Empire, but never put up with this state of affairs. Polish lands passed from one jurisdiction to another, but there was a hostile attitude towards the Russians among the Poles, and, to be honest, sometimes there is now. Although now we have nothing to share.

France

We fought the French four times, but in a fairly short period.

Germany

There were three major wars with Germany, two of them were world wars.

Japan

Four times Russia and the USSR went to war with Japan.

China

Three times there were military conflicts with China.

Meeting of the Allies on the Elbe

It turns out that we are historically enemies with these countries. But now with all of them either good or normal relations. Interestingly, in all kinds of polls, Russians consider the United States an enemy of Russia, although we have never had a war with them. Yes, we fought indirectly, but there were never direct clashes. Yes, and with England (the popular expression "the Englishwoman shits") we encountered in battles insofar as: during the Napoleonic wars of 1807-1812. and the Crimean War. In fact, there has never been a one-on-one war.

Despite the fact that the history of Russia is an almost constant history of wars, I hope that there will be no more fights with any countries. You need to live together.