Tripartite Treaty of Alliance

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TRIPARTITE TREATY OF ALLIANCE

Agreement regulating Allied occupation of Iran during World War II.

Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, the British and Soviet governments jointly demanded that Iran, which bordered the southern Soviet Union, expel an estimated 2,000 Germans working on various projects there. Dissatisfied with the pace of Iran's response, British and Soviet military forces jointly invaded Iran on 25 August 1941, routed its armed forces within days, and occupied the country. To harmonize the occupation with the aims of the Atlantic Charter, which had been promulgated by Britain and the United States less than two weeks before the invasion, Britain and the Soviet Union signed a Tripartite Treaty of Alliance with Iran on 29 January 1942. Under the terms of this agreement, the Allies pledged to respect the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and political independence of Iran, and to withdraw all their military forces from the country within six months after the cessation of all hostilities.


Bibliography


Avery, Peter. Modern Iran. New York: Praeger, 1965.

eric hooglund