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Sidebar:Winston Churchill's 'naughty document' showing his plans to carve up Europe with Stalin after World War Two goes on display for first time
- Britain's wartime leader made the secret pact with Soviet leader Stalin in 1944
- It carved up percentages of Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Romania and Yugoslavia
- Churchill admitted the carve-up of post-war Europe could be seen as 'callous'
The so-called 'naughty document' on which Winston Churchill carved up Europe with Josef Stalin is set to go on public display for the first time.
Britain's wartime leader made the secret pact with Moscow in 1944 as the Allies closed in on victory over Nazi Germany.
The sheet of paper showed the percentages of Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Romania and Yugoslavia which would be under Soviet or British control.
It is going on display at London's National Archives in an exhibition called Britain's Cold War Revealed, which begins on Thursday.
'Naughty document:' This 1944 scrap of paper shows Winston Churchill's secret pact with Josef Stalin to carve up post-war Europe between Russia and the Western allies
The phrase 'naughty document' was coined by Churchill himself, who recognised that it could come over as 'callous'.
Churchill said his American allies would be 'shocked if they saw how crudely he had put it'.
The document contains a handwritten tick believed to have been scrawled by Stalin as he approved the carve-up of post-war Europe.
The exhibition's chief curator Mark Dunton told the Daily Telegraph: 'This was the result of late night discussions between Churchill and Stalin, they both had a fair bit of whiskey.
'I think it's important that this document is going on display because there's so much significance in that little square of paper.
'It's potentially incredibly significant - the fate of millions being decided with the stroke of a pen as a result of a casual meeting.'
The document did not discuss Poland, which Churchill had hoped to keep in the Western fold but which fell into Moscow's sphere of influence in 1945.
Despite his talks in Moscow Churchill also contemplated an 'Operation Unthinkable' war with Russia to drive Stalin's forces out of Eastern Europe.
By the late 1940s the wartime alliance had broken down, prompting the foundation of NATO to safeguard the Western alliance.
Churchill also coined the term 'iron curtain' to describe the new political division of Europe between East and West after the war.
The Berlin crisis of 1948-49, in which Stalin blockaded West Berlin in a failed bid to force the Western Allies out, was one of the early flashpoints of the Cold War.
The new exhibition in London, which runs from April 4 until November 9, marks 70 years since the birth of NATO.
Announcing it last year, Mr Dunton said: 'People will have the opportunity to explore our Cold War documents and learn more about this period of secrets and paranoia.
'The pervasive threat of nuclear war impacted everyday life for millions of people and this thought-provoking exhibition will offer a unique look into political and ideological tensions between the East and West.'
What was in the 'naughty document'?
The 'naughty document', also known as the Percentages Agreement, revealed Churchill and Stalin's plans to carve up post-war Europe.
Churchill revealed its existence in one of his World War II memoirs.
The note begins by saying that it was written by the PM during a meeting with Stalin at the Kremlin.
It reads:
Roumania
Russia - 90 per cent
The others - 10 per cent
Greece
Great Britain, in accord with USA - 90 per cent
Russia - 10 per cent
Yugoslavia
50/50 per cent
Hungary
50/50 per cent
Bulgaria
Russia - 75 per cent
The others - 25 per cent
