The Attack of Nazi Germany on Poland.
On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany attacked Poland. Two days later, England and France—Poland's allies—declared that they were at war with Germany. Thus began World War II. It arose among the imperialist powers between two of their groupings and had a reactionary, aggressive character.
In 1940, Nazi Germany occupied Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and defeated France. In the spring of 1941, fascist troops invaded Yugoslavia and Greece, and by the summer of that year, almost all of Western Europe was under the yoke of the Nazis. The war was closely approaching the borders of the Soviet Union. The destruction of the country of victorious socialism was viewed by the German-fascist command as a decisive step towards establishing its world domination.
The intensified military danger and the advance of the Nazi army to the east urgently dictated the need for immediate measures to strengthen the country's defense capabilities. On September 1, 1939, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted the Law on Universal Military Duty. It stipulated that all men—citizens of the USSR, regardless of race, nationality, religion, educational background, social origin, and status—were obliged to serve in the Armed Forces of our country. Under the new law, the conscription age was lowered from 21 to 19 years, and for those who graduated from school, to 18 years. The terms of service for privates and sergeants were increased from two to three years.
The reunification of the Ukrainian and Belarusian peoples in 1939 was of immense importance for strengthening the strategic position on the western borders of the USSR. In 1940, border issues with Romania were resolved: Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina joined the Moldavian and Ukrainian SSRs. In the same year, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia voluntarily joined the family of sovereign Soviet socialist republics.
In order to further strengthen the economic and defense power of the country, on June 26, 1940, the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR "On the Transition to an Eight-Hour Workday, a Seven-Day Workweek, and the Prohibition of Unauthorized Departure of Workers and Employees from Enterprises and Institutions" was issued. These measures contributed to strengthening labor discipline in production, reducing absenteeism and unauthorized departures from enterprises, and improving the performance of all sectors of industry. To ensure the industry with highly qualified labor, on October 2, 1940, the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on state labor reserves and the creation of factory-school training, craft, and railway schools was issued.
Measures were taken to strengthen military-organizational work. The decision of the XVIII Congress of the VKP(b) to create a military department in the apparatus of party committees (district, city, regional, and central committees of the Communist Parties of the Union republics) was of great importance for assisting military authorities in accounting for military personnel, their pre-conscription training, organizing conscription, and mobilization in case of war.
The activities of voluntary organizations of workers were activated. The most massive among them was the Osoaviakhim. By the beginning of the war, there were 3,263 primary organizations operating in the Kyrgyz SSR, compared to 1,788 on January 1, 1939. The number of members of the organization almost doubled during this time, reaching 126,324 by the beginning of the war. In the first half of 1940, through Osoaviakhim, 33,700 workers were trained in marksmanship, 2,500 members became cavalrymen, 655 became machine gunners, and 1,700 became instructors.
The work of sports organizations and the activities of the Red Cross society noticeably improved in terms of their numerical growth and organizational strengthening. All this contributed to increasing the mobilization readiness of the Soviet people, especially the youth—the combat reserve of the Red Army.
The Communist Party sought to further expand the economic potential of the eastern regions of the country. Over three and a half years of the third five-year plan, more than one-third of all investments of the USSR were spent in the East. In Kyrgyzstan, in particular, powerful centers of non-ferrous metallurgy were being created. The construction of the Aktuz lead-zinc mine was proceeding at a rapid pace, and extensive exploration work was being carried out to identify new deposits of mercury, antimony, tungsten, and gold, while the extraction of arsenic, coal, and oil increased, and the railway line Kant—Rybachye and the highway Frunze—Jalal-Abad—Osh were being constructed.
Industrial Progress in the Republic of Kyrgyzstan on the Eve of the Great Patriotic War