page_title: Little Entente
section_title: Consolidation
hierarchical_section_title: Little Entente / Consolidation
caption_attribution_description: English: Prince Michael of Romania, President Edvard Beneš of Czechoslovakia, King Carol II of Romania, Prince Regent Paul of Yugoslavia, and Prince Nicholas of Romania, in Bucharest, Romania in 1936.Español: Miguel de Rumanía, el presidente checoslovaco Benes, Carol II de Rumanía, el regente yugoslavo Pablo y el príncipe Nicolás de Rumanía en Bucarest en 1936.
context_page_description: The Little Entente was an alliance formed in 1920 and 1921 by Czechoslovakia, Romania and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes with the purpose of common defense against Hungarian revanchism and the prospect of a Habsburg restoration. France supported the alliance by signing treaties with each member country. The rapid growth of German power caused its collapse in 1938, and it never went into wartime operation.
context_section_description: Although the thwarted restoration of the Habsburgs was an unambiguous success, subsequent events revealed increasing tensions within the alliance. The Genoa Conference (April 10 to May 19, 1922) highlighted the different opinions among the member states. The problem arose from the possible recognition of the Soviet Union by its European counterparts. Czechoslovakia was mainly an industrial state and so it was disposed to normalise its relations with the Soviet Union and to recognize the newly-formed state. The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and Romania, however, were both agrarian countries that were uninterested in economic co-operation with the Soviet Union. Nevertheless, all member states participating in the Little Entente considered the Soviet Union as a threat.
  In the 1920s, France, as the main supporter of the Little Entente, pursued its policy towards the tightening of the alliance by launching a series of friendship treaties aimed at forging the relations between France; Czechoslovakia; the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes; and Romania. The mentioned treaties were signed as follows:
  The Treaty of Alliance and Friendship between France and Czechoslovakia, signed on January 25, 1924, in Paris, which was concluded for an unlimited time.
  The Treaty of Friendship between France and Romania, signed on June 10, 1926 in Paris, which was originally concluded for 10 years, but it was extended for another 10 years on November 8, 1936.
  The Treaty of Friendship between France and Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, signed on November 1, 1927 in Paris, which was originally concluded for five years, but it was extended on November 10, 1932 and December 2, 1937.
  The treaties obliged the parties to consult their foreign policies, particularly the security matters of the involved states.
  The inevitable consequence of the successful performance of the Little Entente was its institutionalisation. Guided by this purpose, the Pact of Organisation, also called The Little Entente System or The Reorganisation Pact, was signed in Geneva on February 16, 1933, providing a legal framework for a permanent collaboration among the member states. According to the treaty, a Permanent Council and a Permanent Secretary were to be established. The council was designed for periodical meetings attended by the foreign ministers of the three countries, and the secretary was to provide a day-to-day routine operations of the Little Entente. The meetings of the council were to be held in the capitals of the member states at least three times per year, thus enhancing a regular harmonisation of the foreign policies pursued by the given countries. Moreover, by the implementation of the Economic Council into the organisation structure of the Little Entente, the member states declared their will to co-ordinate its economic interests as well.
  The successful performance of the Little Entente resulted in its institutionalisation. Guided by this purpose, the Pact of Organisation, also called The Little Entente System or The Reorganisation Pact, was signed in Geneva on February 16, 1933. Ratifications were exchanged in Prague on May 30, 1933, and the treaty became effective on the same day. It was registered in League of Nations Treaty Series on July 4, 1933. The treaty was delivered by Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the member states: Bogoljub Jevtić for Yugoslavia, Nicolae Titulescu for Romania, and Edvard Beneš for Czechoslovakia. The aim of the Pact of Organisation was to provide a legal framework for a permanent collaboration among the member states. The objective was to be reached by an establishing of new institutions operating on behalf of the member states within the Little Entente. The main instruments of collaboration were:
  The Permanent Council was to consist of the ministers of foreign affairs of the three respective countries or of the special delegates appointed for that purpose. Decisions of the council were to be brought unanimously. The council was designed to meet at least three times per year. The mentioned meetings were to be he
caption: Officials of the Little Entente countries in Bucharest, Romania in 1936. From left to right: Prince Michael (Rom.), President Edvard Beneš (Cze.), King Carol II (Rom.), Prince Regent Paul (Yug.), and Prince Nicholas (Rom.).
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