ABSTRACT
Sino-Soviet negotiating records from 1945 are especially important because they prove that the USSR resorted to secret diplomacy to fulfill Russia’s long-term goal of separating Outer Mongolia from China. After China’s 1911 revolution, Russia forced China’s weak republican government to recognize Outer Mongolia’s autonomy in 1915. Outer Mongolia’s status as a Russian protectorate was then renewed after the October Revolution, when the Red Army invaded in 1921 and Soviet diplomats negotiated the secret protocol with Beijing in 1924. Only in 1945, however, did Russia achieve its ultimate goal, when Stalin’s secret negotiations with Chiang resulted in China’s recognition of Outer Mongolia’s independence. The minutes of these negotiations show that it was tacitly understood by both parties that Outer Mongolia had really become part of the USSR.
