Editing Eastern Pact (section)

===Origins===
Franco-Soviet relations improved in the years prior to Hitler's victory in Germany. In 1932 the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression pact with both France and Poland. This was possible due to the weakening of the German-Soviet Rapallo relationship, the prolongation of which in 1931 ([[wikipedia:Treaty_of_Berlin_(1926)|'''Treaty of Berlin''']]) was the last high note in German-Soviet relations. With the rise of Hitler:<blockquote>"The Rapallo relationship between Germany and Russia collapsed […].<ref>Roberts (1995) The Soviet Union and the Origins of the Second World War, 3</ref> Germany, the USSR's most important ally in the capitalist world in the 1920s, had become the object of Soviet encirclement and confrontation".<ref>Ibid., 9</ref></blockquote>This was also a big hit to the Soviet economy as by 1932 almost half of Soviet imports came from Germany.<ref>Overy and Wheatcroft (2000) The Road to War, 224</ref> Hence the Soviet reorientation to France and western powers was the only pragmatic way to avoid diplomatic isolation.