Establishing Soviet military bases in the territory of the Republic of Estonia in 1939
On 23 August 1939, the Soviet Union and Germany signed a non-aggression pact. It contained a secret protocol that placed the Baltic countries in the Soviet sphere of influence. When Germany invaded Poland on 1 September, the Baltic countries declared themselves neutral. On 17 September, Poland was also attacked by the Soviet Union. On 15 September, the Polish submarine Orzeł had sought refuge in Tallinn, at a harbour of a neutral country. It was interned on 18 September but, taking advantage of weak surveillance, the submarine fled Tallinn and finally ended up in England. The Soviet Union used this as a pretext to demand that bases of the Red Army be established in Estonia.
In September 1939 Estonia and the Soviet Union conducted economic negotiations in Moscow. As the talks were approaching conclusion, the Estonian Foreign Minister Karl Selter volunteered to travel to Moscow to sign the agreement, although the document did not require representation on that high a level. It contained the Estonian initiative for a special agreement with the Soviet Union. At the talks on 24 and 25 September between Selter and the Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov, the latter demanded as a security guarantee permission to place Soviet naval and air force bases in Estonia. The official reason was to protect Estonia against foreign aggression, i.e. prevent Estonia from being used as a foothold to attack the Soviet Union. The escape of the submarine Orzeł was given as an example of Estonia’s inability to guarantee the security of its own territory. Selter called a halt to the talks and returned to Tallinn for consultations. On 26 September the Soviet demands were discussed by the parliamentarian foreign and defence commissions, which decided to support the talks and sign the agreement. The Soviet Union had suggested measures to ‘improve Estonian security’ before, e.g. in March of the same year, but Estonia had resisted the threats. As World War II erupted in September 1939, the Estonian leadership, however, decided to sign the agreement to forestall Soviet military aggression.
At the same time the Soviet Union massed troops on the Baltic borders, where there were some incidents. Two items in TASS, the Soviet information agency, increased tension – the first accused Estonia of facilitating the Orzeł’s escape and the second reported the sinking of the Soviet steamer Metallist in the Gulf of Finland by an unknown submarine. It is known today that the steamer was sunk by the Soviet navy themselves.
The Selter-Molotov talks continued on 27 September. At some point, Jossif Stalin also joined in. Using the sinking of the Metallist as a pretext, the Soviet Union demanded that army bases also be installed in Estonia. After consultations, the talks continued on 28 September, and the Pact of Mutual Assistance, lasting ten years, was signed at midnight. The Estonian parliament ratified it in early October.
According to the pact, 25 000 men from the Soviet army, navy and air force were installed in Estonia. This considerably exceeded the size of Estonia’s own army, which consisted of 16, 500 men. The Soviet Union acquired the right to establish naval bases at Saaremaa, Hiiumaa and on Pakri Peninsula (in Paldiski) and, until the latter was completed, to use the Tallinn harbour. Airfields were established in western Estonia, while the ground forces were mostly located in western and north-eastern Estonia. A special rifle corps (including a rifle division and tank brigade), an air force group with six air force regiments, and several navy units were brought to Estonia. In spring 1940 additional land was allocated for extending the Soviet bases.
Western diplomats regarded the pact as essentially a protectorate pact, while the German diplomats viewed it as part of the secret protocol in the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. The Soviet Union forced similar agreements on Latvia and Lithuania. Finland refused. The attempt of the Soviet Union to conquer Finland in the armed conflict known as the Winter War failed.
