What is the root of appeasement policy? What impact did it have on European international relations before World War II?

3. What is the root of appeasement policy? What impact did it have on European international relations before World War II?

The appeasement policy mainly refers to the foreign policy of tolerance and concession adopted by the British and French ruling groups against the fascist aggression and expansion of Germany, Italy and Japan before the Second World War, in order to sacrifice the interests of the weak and weak nations in exchange for peace among the big powers and avoid armed conflicts and confrontation (2). The appeasement policy has extremely complicated domestic and international background and social roots: first, a social background of appeasement policy is the proliferation of pacifist ideas (1); Secondly, the decline of Britain and France is the root cause of its appeasement policy (1); Third, the traditional European diplomatic practices such as the British balance of power policy are important factors (1); Fourth, the hostile attitude towards the Soviet Union prompted these countries to adopt appeasement policies (1).

The trend of appeasement policy makes British foreign policy makers hope to improve relations and friendly cooperation with Germany and Italy through unilateral concessions, thus maintaining the stability of Europe (2). In order to achieve this goal, British leaders believe that the interests of small countries in Central and Eastern Europe can be sacrificed. As long as Germany promises not to make further territorial claims in Europe and ensure the border security in Western Europe, it can promise Germany to realize this change in a peaceful way (2). Under the guidance of this idea, Britain allowed Germany to tear up the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles on German armament and the demilitarized zone of the Rhine, tolerated Germany's annexation of Austria and the Czech Sudetenland (2), was hostile to the Soviet system and tried to belittle the Soviet potential, which eventually led to the strategic abortion of the joint efforts of Britain, France and the Soviet Union against Germany (1). Objectively, it encourages the aggression of fascist countries and intensifies the danger of war. (2)