Potsdam Confrence
From July 17th to August 7th, 1945 the Potsdam Conference was held in Potsdam, Allied-occupied Germany at the home of Prince Wilhelm Hohenzollern. The three superpowers represented at the conference were the USSR represented by Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill for Great Britain (later on Clement Attlee after he was elected as Prime Minister) and Harry S. Truman for the United States. The main porpuse of the conference was to determine the punishment for Nazi Germany who, on May 8th, surrendered unconditionally, as well as issuing peace treaties, establishing post-war order, and determining how to undo the harmful effects of the war itself. Another notable outcome of the Potsdam Conference was the conditions for Japan’s surrender were outlined. They were given an ultimatum to surrender or they would be met with“prompt and utter destruction”, but the terms did not specify about the usage of the newly minted atomic bombs. The Empire of Japan ignored the ultamatum, justifying the drop of the two atomic bombs on what America said were legitimate millitary targets (Hiroshima and Nagasaki) on August 6th and August 9th, 1945 in order to preserve american lives. The abrupt timing of these attacks suggest that Truman did not want Stalin involved in the surrender of Japan, as he was set to invade China on August 15th for the porpuse of removing Japanese Occupation.
"Potsdam Conference" Potsdam Conference N.p. n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014 <http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/potsdam-conference>
"MILESTONES: 1937–1945 The Potsdam Conference, 1945" MILESTONES: 1937–1945 The Potsdam Conference, 1945 N.p. n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014 <https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/potsdam-conf>
"Potsdam Conference" Potsdam Conference N.p. n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014 <http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/potsdam-conference>
"MILESTONES: 1937–1945 The Potsdam Conference, 1945" MILESTONES: 1937–1945 The Potsdam Conference, 1945 N.p. n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014 <https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/potsdam-conf>