In 1928, one of Stalins goals was to rapidly develop a heavy industry. Stalin wanted to make the Soviet Union an industrial fortress and a strong national state. He figured to make Russian communism succeed industrial power was needed. This was to be achieved by creating a command economy, which had meant that the industry was being forced to industrialize. Lenin had previously destroyed the power of private businesses to create a manageable industry. Therefore, when Stalin came into power, most of the major industries were already in government hands. In 1928, Stalin replaced Lenin's New Economic Policy by the first Five-Year Plan. Where within a five-year period, each business was given a target that it must reach. The punishments for failing to meet the target were extremely severe. Many people were forced to work against their own will but Stalin felt that the policy was essential. The first three Five-year Plan from 1928 to 1941 increased production about 400%. By the mid-1930s Russia had surpassed the 1913 production figures of iron, coal and oil. There was no country ever known to industrialize so quickly. As a result, unemployment had been abolished.
Under Stalin's power, the Soviet Union became more involved in international affairs. During the WW1, Russia did not play a major role in the Great War. They didn't have a strong military and their economy was weak. Even in the past, Russia was not active in international affairs as they were under Stalin's control. In 1934, the Soviet Union joined the League of Nations and made diplomatic agreements. This made Russia's defense stronger than the German oppression. Before WW2, both the axis powers and the democracies realized that the balance of power in Europe depended of which side Russia joined. If they joined Britain and France, Hitler would be forced to fight a two-front war. Both sides entered negotiations with Russia, but Stalin and communist Russia had been distrusted by both sides in the past. On August 23, 1939, Stalin and Hitler signed a non-aggression treaty. This Nazi-Soviet pact was shocking to all countries, but Russia had stated that it was for national self-interest only. Stalin wished to avoid war until, at least Russia was prepared. But later, Stalin was aware that Germany might eventually attack his country. On June 1941, German troops invaded Russia. Hitler's invasion on Russia, convinced the Soviet Union to join the 'Grand Alliance', which consisted of only Great Britain and the United States. Then later 26 other nations signed the Atlantic Charter, which was the beginning of the formation of the United Nations. Stalin realized that without help, Germany would triumph. President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill agreed to limited cooperation with Stalin, concluding that Nazi Germany was, in fact, far worse a threat than Communist Russia. In return, Stalin pledged his aid in the war against Japan once Germany had been defeated.
The battle of Stalingrad was the bitter siege that had been sustained in and around that Russian city from August of 1942 to February of 1943. The defeat of the German Sixth Army at Stalingrad not only dealt a crippling blow to Hitler's campaign in the East but also marked the strategic turning point of the Second World War, and has come to be recognized as one of the greatest military debacles of all time. Over the years, the terrible fighting at Stalingrad has also come to symbolize the senseless sacrifice of human life to individual hubris and political whim. In mid-November of 1942, a surprise pincer attack by two Russian armies cut off the German Sixth Army, which was then locked in a bloody struggle for the city of Stalingrad. Trapped in an egg-shaped line of defense thirty miles wide and twenty miles deep, the Sixth Army, which was under the command of General Friedrich Paulus, was ordered by Hitler to hold its ground rather than retreat west to join the vanguard of the German forces. In a matter of two months, from late November of 1942 until the end of January of 1943, a quarter of a million German soldiers, a thousand German panzers, eighteen hundred pieces of artillery, an entire air force of transport planes, and untold quantities of military supplies were obliterated by the combined forces of the Soviet Army and the Russian winter. By February 1943, Russia successfully stopped the German advance, which had attacked Stalingrad. Russia's military, as a result, became stronger.
Therefore, although people had died through Stalin's cruel methods of making Russia powerful, he deserves the title of the 'Father of the USSR', because he successfully industrialized the country, collectivized the farms and made the Soviet Union more active in international affairs. Within ten years, a primarily feudal country changed into an industrialized one. He also collectivized the farms for the good of the people as a whole. He leaded Russia into gaining more victories for the country by becoming more involved in worldwide affairs. He guided his child, the USSR, to become stronger and more powerful among others. By setting crucial goals for the country, the Soviet Union became stronger than it was before Stalin was in power. Stalin's health deteriorated towards the end of World War II. He suffered from atherosclerosis from his heavy smoking. He suffered a mild stroke around the time of the Victory Parade, and a severe heart attack in October 1945. The only question that concerns many is, were there any other alternatives of achieving his goals, without killing millions?
