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Treaty of Versailles signed with Germany
The Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919, after World War I had ended and it gave Germany very unfair terms. These terms forced Germany to take full responsibility for the war, reduce its territory, limit its military, and harsh reperations. These terms ruined Germany and their economy for years, which is what eventually led to Hitlers rise in Germany. This is one of the main reasons there was so much dissatisfaction with the peace settlements post WW1 -
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Washington Naval Conference
The Washington Naval Conference was held to discuss naval disarmament and reduce tensions. It included the US, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy. Although it was held to promote peace, it failed and did not prevent any further conflicts due to these issues. This failure was one of the reasons international tensions remained high from 1920-1923. -
Genoa Conference
The Genoa Conference was led by Britain, France, and Italy to address post-World War I economic issues. It did not work very well, though, due to tensions between countries. Britain and the Soviet Union had tension between the two which led to minimal progress and not the intended outcome of the conference. This was another reason international tensions remained high from 1920-1923. -
Rapallo Pact between Germany and USSR
The Rapallo Pact was a diplomatic agreement between Germany and the Soviet Union. These nations were both isolated by most of the other powers post-World War I, and it was meant to give both of them allies. It gave them both more military strength and help due to everyone else being part of the League or allies with League members. This was another reason international tensions remain high because instead of trying to repair relations with these two they excluded them so much they came together. -
Ruhr Crisis
The Ruhr Crisis was due to Germany's failure to pay its reparations. The French and Belgians took over the Ruhr region in response, leading to German citizens resisting. This led to hyperinflation in Germany and harmed international relations, leading to the Dawes Plan. This is another reason international tensions remained high from 1920 to 1923. -
Dawes Plan
The Dawes Plan was made to address Germany's economic crisis due to unfair reparations. It gave Germany loans from America to stabilize their economy. It did help in the short term, but since they were just loans, they were still massively in debt. This is one of the reasons attempts to improve international relations from 1924-1929 were a failure. -
Locarno Conference
The Locarno Conference was held to discuss borders including Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, and Britain. It was said to have been a success, but it did not really ease tensions. The conference failed to address many issues, like territorial disputes, and left many tensions remaining. This is another reason why attempts to improve interpersonal relationships were a failure. -
Germany Joins LoN
Germany joined the league in 1926, showing their progress made after the peace treaties post-World War I. It was made to show Germany wanted peace, disarmament, and collective security. Political and international tensions led to future conflicts, however, which led to them not being in the LoN permanently. This was another event that happened to try and improve international relations but ended up eventually failing. -
Kellogg-Briand Pact
The Kellogg Briand Pact was signed in 1928 and aimed to remove war to solve disputes. Frank Kellogg who was the US secretary of State and French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand renounced war as an instrument of national policy and tried to bring peaceful conflict resolutions. It did not end up preventing WW2 however. This is another event that had good intent to improve international relations but ended up failing. -
Young Plan
The Young Plan was created in 1929 and again aimed to solve the unfair reparations given to Germany. The plan reduced Germany's total reparations and extended the amount of time they had to pay them. It did help tremendously, but the Great Depression just turned their economy right back upside down. This, however, is something that was successful at improving international relations from 1924–1929 by easing tensions between France, Britain, and Germany.