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Countries Invaded by the USSR

Name the countries that were invaded by the Soviet Union with hostile intent, 1922–1991.
One of these countries no longer exists
Not including countries that were briefly independent following the collapse of imperial Russia
Not including countries that were liberated from foreign occupiers
Only countries that were sovereign at the time, so Austria doesn't count
Quiz by Quizzer6794
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Last updated: October 18, 2021
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First submittedApril 29, 2015
Times taken63,783
Average score78.6%
Rating4.24
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Year
Country
1934
China
1939
Poland
1939
Finland
1940
Estonia
1940
Latvia
Year
Country
1940
Lithuania
1940
Romania
1941
Iran
1944
Hungary
1944
Bulgaria
Year
Country
1945
Germany
1945
Japan
1956
Hungary
1968
Czechoslovakia
1979
Afghanistan
101 Recent Comments
+2
Level 61
May 2, 2017
A single-finger typist could finish this in the time allotted. I think 30 seconds should be a good amount of time to get the heart racing
+118
Level 68
May 25, 2017
It's not about typing, we need time to think!
+4
Level 51
Sep 17, 2017
Norway?
+63
Level 90
Sep 17, 2017
No way.
+29
Level 89
Nov 25, 2018
I don't even measure nor weigh myself, buddy.
+21
Level 61
Feb 2, 2020
I’ve never eaten curds, nor whey.
+5
Level 68
Feb 20, 2022
You have the nerve, aye?
+2
Level 75
Nov 8, 2022
I don't measure with a pound, nor wey.
+2
Level 51
Oct 6, 2022
Those were mostly Finnish troops+a few Swedish Im pretty sure
+1
Level 48
Sep 17, 2017
I'm glad that I correctly guessed Iran. Perfect score with 1:26 remaining
+1
Level 66
Feb 25, 2022
The only one I missed.
+5
Level 71
Sep 17, 2017
Persia for Iran in 1941?
+1
Level ∞
Sep 17, 2017
Okay
+6
Level 83
Sep 17, 2017
What about Polish-Soviet War of 1920?
+12
Level ∞
Oct 18, 2021
This was prior to the formation of the USSR in 1922.
+3
Level 66
Sep 17, 2017
Does anyone have an example of a country invading another without there being hostile intentions.
+22
Level 91
Sep 18, 2017
The British invaded Iceland in WW2. They had no intention of being permanently there but felt it was in their best interest to hold the country during hostilities. They were officially not welcomed but they did not fight the landing forces. The British told the US to occupy whatever territories in the Caribbean they deemed necessary to protect the Americas.
+4
Level 55
Jun 5, 2023
So when Britain invades Iceland for strategic reasons it's not hostile, but when the USSR invades Poland and Finland for the same reason it's hostile. Ok buddy
+4
Level 64
Aug 9, 2023
For what reason were the invasions of Poland and Finland strategic?

Soviet Union wasn't at war with Germany yet, and in both instances they had planned to install or did install puppet governments in said countries.

Also total causalities from the invaded countries totalled over 300,000 compared to the 0 casualties suffered by Iceland.

UK paid compensation to any damage they caused during the occupation, didn't interfere in internal affairs, and promised and subsequently left Iceland after the war concluded. In contrast, Finland was made to pay war reparations, and even to today, Russia still controls territory that was ceded to them following the Winter War.

+2
Level 58
Oct 9, 2023
Iceland is currently a sovereign nation while Poland's eastern border still follows the same line that marked the division between the German and Soviet portions of the country when they invaded together. It's hard to argue that an invasion was purely strategic when you straight up kept all the land you invaded.
+14
Level 81
Sep 20, 2017
What about the British Invasion of the mid 1960s?
+16
Level ∞
Oct 24, 2017
The U.S. invasion of France in WWII was not with "hostile intent" to the French.
+4
Level 69
Jan 14, 2018
Yeah, these were the sorts of "invasions", I thought of too; the one that first popped into my head was Gulf War I – 30-some-odd countries "invading" Kuwait, but only to kick an invader out. But I confess that upon first reading, I did the same double-take as mckinpo! This is clearly why Quizmaster gets paid the big bucks :-)
+5
Level 55
Feb 9, 2020
It was a hostile intent - towards the Germans.
+5
Level 79
Sep 6, 2020
Not sure I've heard of a U.S. invasion of France in WW2. Two Allied ones, yes.
+1
Level 57
Jul 7, 2022
The "U.S. invasion of France in WWII"? Seriously? There's having a one-eyed view of history and then there's this. Wow.
+20
Level 78
Sep 6, 2020
The Swiss army accidentally invades Liechtenstein every now and then. One time their soldiers got lost due to bad weather.
+5
Level 68
Sep 18, 2017
Georgia, which was internationally recognised and invaded in 1921? Armenia, Azerbaijan?
+1
Level 49
Sep 6, 2020
agree... Armenia for sure was invaded by the soviet union in 1921, called the red army invasion of Armenia. maybe it wasn't included though since Quizzer only seems to include invasions after the official foundation of the USSR in Dezember 1922. imho it should still be included to be historically accurate.
+1
Level 69
Sep 20, 2017
No! Missed Iran!
+5
Level 40
Jan 11, 2019
liberated*
+1
Level 70
Feb 13, 2019
Japan should be included. The Soviets invaded Karafuto (the Southern part of Sakhalin) and the Kuril islands, which were then Japanese.
+7
Level 47
Mar 16, 2020
The "invasion of Hungary, Austria, Germany, and Bulgaria" are not factual statements. The Soviets never invaded these countries, rather they were the target of theirs in 1941. The Soviet entry into these countries in 1944/45 were the result of the declaration of war by Nazi Germany and her co-belligerents, and was the continuation of these hostilities.
+5
Level ∞
Mar 16, 2020
I am confused by your objection.
+3
Level 76
Apr 22, 2022
They're making the same point you made about the US "invading" France in WW2. Double standards?
+1
Level 76
Sep 7, 2023
Germany was at war with the USSR when they invaded and occupied (the fact that Germany invaded the USSR first notwithstanding), and the Germans were not at all happy about it (even the ones who hated the nazis and wanted the war to end would rather haven been invaded by the western allies). When the USA invaded France, they were not at war with France, and I think the French were very happy about it.
+12
Level 81
Sep 6, 2020
Invading a country doesn't require that you started the conflict.
+3
Level 58
Apr 6, 2020
Manchukuo? Slovakia?
+1
Level 59
Sep 6, 2020
Can't have invaded Slovakia, Czechoslovakia split in 1993
+8
Level 86
Sep 6, 2020
The Slovak Republic was a Nazi puppet state from 1939 to 1945. The Soviets abolished the state on April 4, 1945. Hence it would be accurate to include Slovak Republic as invaded with hostile intent by the Soviets.
+2
Level 72
Sep 6, 2020
Why Iran?
+5
Level 86
Sep 6, 2020
There was a joint British-Soviet occupation of Persia in 1941 with the Soviets taking the northern half. In reality both the Brits and the Soviets were interfering in Persia's domestic affairs and occupying oil fields during the interwar period.
+4
Level 81
Sep 7, 2020
The Shah at the time of the invasion was seen as friendly to Nazi Germany and the Allies couldn't afford to lose the country to the Axis. It was a preemptive move to secure strategic Allied control over the area. Afterward the Shah was forced to abdicate in favor of his son, who would go on to be the Shah famously chased out of the country some 38 years later, in part for his friendly stance toward foreign Westerners.
+2
Level 67
Sep 6, 2020
where is the soviet polish war of 1919? i think you have forgotten the early soviet era.
+3
Level 78
Sep 6, 2020
The Soviet Union only started to exist in 1922.
+8
Level 89
Sep 6, 2020
What about the USA? Never forget, in 1984 the Soviets and their Cuban allies occupied Calumet, Colorado. Brothers Jed and Matt Eckert and their plucky gang of high school guerrilla soldiers, The Wolverines, fought back against the occupying forces.
+3
Level 71
Sep 6, 2020
WOLVERINES!
+1
Level 52
Sep 6, 2020
And they conquered those all exept Finland?
+3
Level 81
Sep 7, 2020
Not really. Invasions of Bulgaria, Iran, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Germany and Japan were all part of the WW2 counter-offensive against the Axis powers after Germany attacked the USSR, and they weren't annexed to the Soviet Union after the fighting was done even though friendly governments were often set up afterward. The later invasions of Hungary and Czechoslovakia were to crush local political dissidents against Communist and pro-Soviet rule; they also withdrew. And the occupation of Afghanistan to assist the Communist government there, though lengthy, ultimately ended in Soviet withdraw from the country. Really the only invasions here that could accurately be described as "conquests" are the Baltic states which were absorbed into the USSR in 1940.
+2
Level 64
Sep 7, 2020
Poland as well, the Soviets kept the territory they got from the pact with Germany
+2
Level 81
Sep 7, 2020
part of it.
+1
Level 45
Sep 6, 2020
Missed Bulgaria because I was absolutely certain I had already tried it...
+12
Level 57
Sep 7, 2020
Wow, that terrible USSR...... How short that list is, comparing to peace loving USA....
+4
Level 81
Sep 7, 2020
Hello Mr. Troll. Lovely staw man you've got there. Are you on your way to Oz?
+8
Level 57
Sep 7, 2020
https://www.jetpunk.com/user-quizzes/154814/list-of-countries-the-usa-has-bombed-since-wwii
+1
Level 81
Sep 7, 2020
You seem to have understood my comment as well as you understood the quiz.
+6
Level ∞
Oct 18, 2021
In 1945 the United States occupied West Germany and Japan. Within 15 years those countries had reached levels of prosperity and population that were far higher than ever before.

In 1945 the Soviet Union occupied Eastern Europe. The situation was so brutal and depressing that they had to kill people who tried to flee to the west.

A simple list of countries invaded is a shallow and ultimately pointless method of comparing the effects of two countries on the world stage.

+5
Level 79
Oct 18, 2021
Again QM, the ALLIES occupied West Germany. As it happens the British in particular played a key role in the establishment of West German democracy, its social/economic recovery and its integration into the Western alliances.
+9
Level 59
Nov 21, 2021
Why do you cherry-pick West Germany and Japan, countries which were already rich and developed due to imperialism? What about Iraq? Libya? Afghanistan? It is ridiculous to imply that American invasion/occupation consistently results in "levels of prosperity and population that were far higher than ever before".
+6
Level 81
Feb 23, 2022
Afghan HDI increased every single year after the US-led invasion, but it was starting out at a pretty big deficit so might be hard to appreciate how far they came. Vietnam chased the Americans out and was taken over by Communists, so, not really a valid comparison; though actually today, many decades after the US pulled out and years since more-or-less fully embracing Capitalism, the country has actually started to thrive and the pace of growth is pretty impressive. Iraq.. was kind of a $#!tshow, granted.
+3
Level 81
Feb 23, 2022
tcook: when do you mistakenly believe the US invaded Libya? Are you talking about the Barbary Wars and despairing at the unlawful infringement of the rights of these people to engage in coastal piracy? Or do you mean the NATO action of 2011 in which no invasion took place and that stopped an insane tinpot Colonel's tank columns en route to butcher his perceived enemies in Benghazi? I guess you're in favor of the right of unpopular and unbalanced dictators to slaughter their own people en masse? Americans never stepped foot in Libya after that what happened then was on them. Being against the NATO action just makes you pro-butchering. If Donald Trump or some other would-be-king tries to assume absolute power in the US after losing popular support in 2024 or beyond, and he sends an armored division to wipe out his political enemies in New York or wherever, for the record, please send NATO to wipe out the tanks. I'll probably be one of the protestors. Thanks.
+3
Level 36
Feb 23, 2022
Your comments are always the best. Dependably so. TY.
+1
Level 59
Aug 3, 2021
The Soviets also invaded Xinjiang (China) in 1934
+1
Level ∞
Oct 18, 2021
Added, thank you.
+1
Level 46
Sep 30, 2021
What about China and/or Mongolia?
+1
Level 81
Oct 18, 2021
Ukraine in 2014? The UN still recognizes Crimea as Ukrainian, but Russia took control in 2014 and it certainly looked like an invasion.
+7
Level ∞
Oct 18, 2021
The Soviet Union ceased to exist in 1991.
+1
Level 72
Oct 19, 2021
Austria definitely missing.

The red army occupied the capital and other territories in 1945 and they left only in 1955. Austria is neutral since than, not NATO member.

There are books about that:

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Army-Austria-Occupation-1945-1955/dp/1793626588

Yugoslavia is more questionable, but still:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_in_Yugoslavia#Liberation_of_Belgrade_and_eastern_Yugoslavia:

In the early October 1944 three Bulgarian armies, consisting of around 340,000-man,[69] together with the Red Army reentered occupied Yugoslavia and moved from Sofia to Niš, Skopje and Pristina to blocking the German forces withdrawing from Greece.[70][71] The Red Army organised the Belgrade Offensive, and took the city on 20 October.

+1
Level ∞
Oct 19, 2021
Added a caveat, thanks. We used to have Austria on the quiz but took it off due to many objections.
+1
Level 75
Oct 25, 2021
Interesting, got all except Iran which I had no idea about.

Can someone explain the final caveat for me pls:

Only countries that were not sovereign at the time, so Austria doesn't count

+1
Level 26
Dec 30, 2021
I think it is meant to be "Only countries that were sovereign at the time. so Austria doesn't count," this of course referencing Anschluss and the fact that Austria was not independent at the time of the Soviet invasion.
+1
Level 73
Oct 30, 2021
Pretty sure my grandfather in the Third Army met Soviet troops when the front closed in Czechoslovakia, circa May 1945.
+1
Level 66
Feb 23, 2022
I want to imagine the look on their faces when they realized that Germany was defeated.
+8
Level 78
Feb 23, 2022
Looks like we’ll need a quiz for countries invaded by Putalitarian Russia soon.
+6
Level 81
Feb 23, 2022
He would be proud to be included on the list. And pathetic strongman wannabes the world over would call the moves "brilliant," "smart," and "savvy."
+1
Level 78
Sep 14, 2022
I think I get what you’re getting at. ;)

Hulkamania running wild, am I right?

+1
Level 71
Feb 23, 2022
Why have you added Axis countries that declared war on the USSR(except Bulgaria)? It doesn't count as invasion at all.
+1
Level 71
Feb 23, 2022
And Baltic countries with Romania(Moldova) don't count cuz they peacefully joined to Union, there were no even huge riots lol
+1
Level 67
May 19, 2023
Romania was an independent Axis country in WWII (although under German influence), and the Soviets invaded it, so it should count.
+1
Level 72
Feb 23, 2022
Would Denmark not be considered? The Soviets held the island of Bornholm for almost a year post-WW2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_at_Bornholm
+1
Level 73
Feb 23, 2022
"Only countries that were not sovereign at the time" Say what?
+1
Level ∞
Feb 23, 2022
Whoops, removed that "not" that shouldn't have been there.
+2
Level 67
Feb 23, 2022
I think that Denmark maybe belongs to the list? The soviets invaded the island of Bornholm a few days after Denmark was officially liberated from German occupation. The tricky thing is that Bornholm itself was still occupied by the Germans at the time that had orders to only surrender to the British, so in some sense it was unwillingly liberated by the Soviets. History is complicated
+1
Level 72
Feb 23, 2022
I commented the same thing although it didn't appear for some reason (I included the wiki link, maybe that's why?)

I think Bornholm should count as the Soviets continued occupying it until mid-1946 so it can't really be called a liberation.

+18
Level 78
Feb 23, 2022
Well, this is Timely
+9
Level 71
Feb 23, 2022
Damn, yeah. Literally the day Russia started its invasion. And now that I think about it, it's probably on purpose. No better day for Putin to start his resurrection of the Soviet Union than on a day that glorifies the Soviet Union.
+2
Level 81
Feb 25, 2022
given some of the language Putin has used recently, I think you're probably right.
+3
Level 32
Apr 7, 2022
It is incredibly inaccurate to say Putin is trying to bring back the USSR. The pre1917 Russian Empire? Yes. The USSR? No, as USSR's beliefs run quite contrary to Putin's (except in the level of control over the general populace shared by almost every Russian state throughout history). The USSR was quite accepting of the many ethnic groups that called it home, far more so than the US at the time, never invading because they felt a group of people did not deserve self-determination as Putin is doing now. Also (this should be a blatantly obvious reason) the USSR was a communist state, and Putin is about as far from a communist as you can get.
+1
Level 81
Jun 6, 2022
The USSR's professed values and the policies enacted by the leaders of the USSR weren't ever exactly similar, though.
+2
Level 32
Sep 2, 2022
Yeah, but the US is no different claiming to be a country of freedom while not letting 20% of its population vote and launching proxy wars worldwide to install totalitarian dictatorships.
+1
Level 67
May 19, 2023
Who is the 20%?
+1
Level 81
Oct 20, 2022
The US, while not perfect, granted, is still quite a bit different. False equivalency.
+1
Level 53
Feb 23, 2022
they kinda invaded russia
+4
Level 64
Feb 24, 2022
Well this didn't age well...
+2
Level 91
Feb 24, 2022
Needs an update.
+5
Level 65
Feb 24, 2022
If this were about Russia instead of only the USSR, yes... Crazy world we live in.
+1
Level 29
Feb 25, 2022
What about Tanna Tuva, it did exist and then it was invaded.
+1
Level 72
Sep 28, 2022
mongolia and armenia is missing
+1
Level 32
Nov 3, 2022
Invaded? 😂😂😂 Many of these "invasions" happened mostly during WWII against fascist countries.
+1
Level 67
May 29, 2023
They were still invaded ???????
+1
Level 70
Aug 16, 2023
1956 in hungary was not an invasion, it was military support for the crushing of protests by the hungarian government. I don't think it counts as an invasion if the local government approved of it.