Hitler-Stalin Pact

The Hitler-Stalin Pact, officially known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, was a treaty signed in August 1939 between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. It was a non-aggression agreement, meaning the two countries promised not to attack each other. The pact also included secret protocols dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of influence. This agreement allowed Hitler to invade Poland without fearing Soviet intervention, leading to the outbreak of World War II. The alliance was short-lived, as Hitler betrayed the pact in 1941 by launching Operation Barbarossa, invading the Soviet Union.