Conflicts between Socialist States

Many Soviet and marxist authors have attempted to demonstrate the impossibility of 'antagonistic conflicts' (including wars) between socialist states. Nevertheless, the first application of military force in relations between states governed by communist parties took place about sixty years ago when a Red Army regiment invaded Tannu-Tuva. So far there have been two outright wars between socialist states. This article studies in detail eleven conflictual dyads among the socialist countries after 1945 The USSR is the most frequent participant and most conflicts were related to the smaller countries' dependent relations with the socialist superpower. A majority of them also have roots in pre-revolutionary politics. The lack of a machinery for conflict resolution among the socialist states has contributed to a resort to arms. The socialist countries have also been unwilling to turn to independent international arbitration. However, the socialist versus non-socialist dichotomy is gradually losing its saliency. In the long run a transition to communism in a Marxian sense may provide a reconciliation between Marx and the Kantian belief that international political democracy is a precondition for international peace