Interesting you say this given that even before jointly invading Europe with Nazi Germany, Moscow secretly armed, trained and helped build up Germany's war machine in violation of the Treaty of Versailles The Rapallo framework and its secret follow-up — the Treaty of Rapallo (1922) and the covert German–Soviet military cooperation agreements that grew out of it.. Here’s the background and what actually happened: 🇮🇹 Treaty of Rapallo (1922, near Genoa, Italy) Signed: April 16, 1922, in the Italian seaside town of Rapallo, during the Genoa Economic Conference. Parties: The Weimar Republic (Germany) and Soviet Russia. Public terms: Both sides renounced financial and territorial claims from World War I and re-established diplomatic and trade relations. Hidden intent: It opened the door to secret military cooperation, allowing Germany to evade the Versailles Treaty’s disarmament clauses. 🔒 Secret Military Cooperation (1920s–early 1930s) After Rapallo, the two states developed clandestine programs under cover of trade or “technical exchanges.” Key sites included: Kama Tank School (near Kazan): training grounds for German tank officers, testing early Panzer prototypes. Lipetsk Air Base (Lipetsk, Russia): joint German–Soviet pilot training and aircraft testing. Tomka Chemical Weapons Facility (near Volsk): joint development of gas warfare technologies. Germany supplied engineers, designs, and technology; the Soviets provided space, secrecy, and raw materials. By about 1928–1933, these programs were in full swing — essentially a secret German rearmament program conducted on Soviet soil with Moscow’s consent. 📘 In summary: The conference and treaty you’re recalling is the Treaty of Rapallo (1922), signed during the Genoa Conference in Italy. The secret German–Soviet military collaboration that followed (1922-1933) enabled Germany to train and arm forces, including tanks and aircraft, well before Hitler officially broke the Versailles restrictions.

A swiss company that Putin controls by proxy will now "buy" Lukoil's European assets.