Comparative Analysis of Agrarian Reforms in Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany and North Korea (1945–1946)

Abstract

The military administrations formed in the Soviet occupation zones in East Germany and North Korea were in similar conditions and faced similar challenges. One of the key issues of that time for both countries was land reform. The authors aim to analyse and compare the approaches of administrations in Central Europe and the Far East, to highlight common and special points in the planning of agrarian transformations. The study is based on a wide range of archival materials from the collections of the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation, the State Archive of the Russian Federation, as well as research papers in Russian, English, German and Korean. The source database also includes published documents of North Korean origin. Consideration of agricultural projects allows one to conclude that neither in East Germany nor in North Korea did the military administrations plan land reform as a step towards Sovietization of these territories. However, an important goal was to strengthen the social base of the Communists. The authors note that local specifics, as well as the domestic and foreign political situation in the region had a significant impact on the projects. This refutes the frequently expressed point of view in modern historiography, indicating that the USSR did not use the same template for projects in different regions.