On August 9, 1945, units of the Red Army attacked Japanese troops stationed in occupied Manchuria. The rapid advance of Soviet units demoralized the Japanese, and the defeat of the most powerful grouping of the Imperial Japanese army put an end to World War II.

Dangerous neighbor

The friction between Russia and Japan began in the 19th century. St. Petersburg was engaged in the development of its own Far Eastern lands, as well as strengthening its presence in the region. In addition, he created obstacles to Japanese expansion into Chinese and Korean territories. 

In 1904, Japan attacked the Russian Empire. St. Petersburg underestimated the capabilities of the enemy, and the Japanese managed to win several major victories. This forced Russia to agree to peace on not the most favorable terms: it was forced to recognize Korea as a sphere of Japanese influence, transfer Tokyo rights to South Sakhalin, the Liaodong Peninsula with Port Arthur and the city of Dalny.

After the 1917 revolution, relations between Russia and Japan did not improve.

“The Japanese took part in the intervention in Russia in 1918-1925, and it was possible to expel them only thanks to a combination of military and diplomatic measures. And in the 1930s, they landed in Kamchatka and were engaged in illegal fish processing there, "historian and publicist Alexander Shirokorad said in an interview with RT.

In 1938-1939, the conflict between Moscow and Tokyo entered a "hot phase". Japanese troops committed aggression in the area of ​​Lake Khasan, attacking the Soviet outpost, and the Khalkhin-Gol River, however, was stopped by the Red Army and the Mongol allies of the USSR.

According to historians, the losses incurred in the battles with the Red Army cooled the ardor of official Tokyo and persuaded it on April 13, 1941 to sign a pact of neutrality with the USSR.

  • Red Army soldiers of the 149th Infantry Regiment go on the attack during the fighting on Khalkhin Gol
  • RIA News
  • © V. Goloveshkin

Nevertheless, as the sources note, on April 26, 1941, at a meeting at the headquarters of the Kwantung Army deployed in northeast China, plans for an attack on the USSR began to be discussed under strict secrecy. In order not to attract Moscow's attention by the transfer of a large number of new units to the border, the Japanese command increased the number of existing ones, secretly transporting servicemen in small groups.

According to a number of estimates, the number of personnel in the divisions of the Kwantung Army in 1941 was almost twice the number of personnel in divisions on other fronts. In addition, the Japanese in 1941 dramatically increased the number of tanks and aircraft on the border with the USSR.

According to historians, the Soviet intelligence station in Tokyo under the leadership of Richard Sorge played an important role in countering the aggressive plans of the Japanese authorities. Soviet intelligence officers warned Moscow about the plans of official Tokyo in 1938-1939, and when Germany attacked the Soviet Union, Sorge informed the Japanese leadership about the course of hostilities, focusing on the Wehrmacht's defeats, and convinced Tokyo of the disadvantage of war with the USSR. After Sorge learned that Japan had decided to take a wait-and-see attitude, he sent a message to Moscow, which allowed the USSR leadership to transfer part of the troops from the Far East to the Soviet-German front.

  • Richard Sorge
  • © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

“But the fact that in 1941 Japan did not unleash a full-scale war against the USSR does not mean that everything was calm in the Far East. The Japanese repeatedly violated the state border, fired at Soviet territory and ships. The situation was nervous, "Andrei Koshkin, a full member of the Academy of Military Sciences, said in an interview with RT.

Soviet-Japanese war

“In 1945, the Western allies began to actively persuade Joseph Stalin to join the war against Japan. According to the estimates of the American military, they would have had to wage war against the Japanese on their own until 1946-1947, while incurring heavy losses. During the Yalta Conference, the Soviet leadership agreed to start a war against Japan after the defeat of Hitler's Germany, ”military historian Yuri Knutov told RT.

On April 5, 1945, Moscow announced to Tokyo that it had denounced the neutrality pact. This caused great concern in Tokyo, the Japanese command began to deploy additional divisions in the Soviet border area. The total number of Japanese troops in Manchuria in the summer of 1945 is estimated by historians at about 1.3 million troops.

“The Soviet leadership, under conditions of the strictest secrecy, began to transfer troops to the Far East that had experience of war with the Nazis. Moreover, even the officers did not know where and why they were going, ”said Yuri Knutov.

According to him, Marshal Alexander Vasilevsky was appointed commander-in-chief of the Soviet troops in the Far East, who coordinated the actions of the Soviet fronts during the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, and also led the assault on Koenigsberg.

On August 8, 1945, the Soviet government, through the Japanese embassy, ​​conveyed to official Tokyo that from the next day the USSR would be in a state of war with Japan.

The decision of the USSR was welcomed in the West.

“The war declared today by the Soviet Union is proof of the solidarity that exists between the main allies, and it should shorten the period of struggle and create conditions that will contribute to the establishment of universal peace. We welcome this great decision of Soviet Russia, ”the British government said in a special statement.

  • Marshal of the Soviet Union Alexander Vasilevsky
  • © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

It is worth noting that even before the start of World War II, Japanese troops began to erect 17 fortified areas near the border with the USSR and its allied Mongolia, and there are about 4.5 thousand long-term firing structures in them. The Japanese command hoped to hold them for at least six months.

“To break through such a powerful fortification, the experience gained by Vasilevsky during the assault on Konigsberg was useful for the Red Army. In general, about 1.7 million soldiers and officers were involved in the Soviet offensive, ”Knutov emphasized.

As Andrei Koshkin noted, the strikes of the Soviet troops were planned in such a way as to encircle and cut into parts the main forces of the Kwantung Army, which at that time was the most powerful group of Japanese forces.

On the night of August 9, Soviet bombers attacked military targets and communication centers of the enemy. On land, the advance detachments and reconnaissance units of the Red Army were the first to enter the battle. In the morning, the shock groupings of the Transbaikal, as well as the 1st and 2nd Far Eastern fronts went over to the offensive.

  • An artillery crew of the 1st Far Eastern Front is fighting
  • RIA News
  • © Alexander Stanovov

The 6th Guards Tank Army of the Trans-Baikal Front reached a rate of advance of 120-150 km per day. On August 12, army units reached the Central Manchurian Plain. Fierce fighting broke out in the 36th Army's offensive zone - its units stormed the Japanese fortified areas. By August 17, they completely defeated the garrison of the Hailar fortified area.

In general, the troops of the Trans-Baikal Front in one week penetrated deep into the rear of the Japanese grouping located in Northern Manchuria.

On August 14, the troops of the 1st Far Eastern Front broke through the enemy fortified areas in all main directions in the zone of their offensive. The forces of the left flank of the front reached the approaches to the cities of Wangqing and Tumyn and, together with units of the fleet, captured the ports of Yuki and Racine, depriving the Kwantung Army of communication with the mother country. The troops of the 2nd Far Eastern Front defeated the enemy on the right bank of the Amur in the area between the Sungari and Ussuri rivers.

On August 15, 1945, the forces of the Trans-Baikal Front completed the throw across the Big Khingan ridge and began to advance towards Mukden. The troops of both Far Eastern fronts occupied a number of cities and forced a large group of the enemy to surrender. By August 17, the grouping of the Kwantung Army located in the border zone was completely defeated.

From 18 to 24 August, Soviet troops landed in Changchun, Mukden, Harbin, Girin, Pyongyang, Dalniy and Port Arthur.

On August 19, the terms of surrender were transferred to the headquarters of the Kwantung Army, but the Japanese troops continued to resist fiercely for some time.

"Japanese officers went hand-to-hand with swords, soldiers threw themselves under tanks with grenades," said Koshkin.

  • Surrender of the Kwantung Army
  • RIA News
  • © Evgeny Khaldei

At the end of August 1945, Soviet troops disarmed the Kwantung Army and local collaborationist formations, and also landed troops on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. On September 3, Marshal Vasilevsky reported to Moscow about the end of the campaign.

The losses of Japanese troops in battles with the Red Army exceeded 700 thousand people (of which about 640 thousand were prisoners). Irrecoverable losses of the Red Army amounted to 12 thousand servicemen.

According to Yuri Knutov, it was the war with the USSR that put Tokyo in a hopeless position, which even members of the Japanese government admitted.

“The role of the Soviet Union in these events completely changed the political map of the Pacific region. The actions of the Red Army inspired the left-wing forces, which not only intensified their struggle against the Japanese, but also opposed any form of colonialism. This contributed to the subsequent emergence of the PRC, the DPRK, the liberation of Indochina and the countries of southern Asia. Well, it goes without saying that the USSR regained the territories previously seized by Japan from Russia. It was the restoration of historical justice, ”summed up Knutov.