Soviet-Albanian Relations

Abstract

The research problem scrutinized in this article is the identification of the factors that led to the formation within the Soviet bloc of a particular relationship between the hegemonic state – the ussr – and the smallest one – Albania. This study, based primarily on documents from Soviet archives, examines the causes for the emergence and growth of differences between the ussr and Albania, spanning the period from the death of Stalin to the open showdown at the meetings of the Communist Parties in Bucharest in 1960. Tirana embarked on the path of distancing itself from the Soviet Union, gradually drifting towards China, and began laying the foundation for its own special model of socialism. As a result, by the beginning of the 1960s, differences reached such a level that Soviet-Albanian conflict became inevitable.