Adolf Hitler's aggressive foreign policy, which began with the reoccupation of the Saar in March 1935, set the stage for the invasion of Poland in 1939. His orchestration of military and diplomatic maneuvers, combined with a complete disregard for the Treaty of Versailles, emboldened him to take further actions, including reoccupying the demilitarized Rhineland and aligning with Italy. These territorial expansions and the rhetoric around Lebensraum led to the eventual declaration of war by Britain and France.
The failure of world powers to respond effectively to earlier aggressions, such as Japan’s actions in Manchuria and Italy’s in Abyssinia, created a dangerous precedent. Hitler exploited this international inaction, convincing him that he could continue his expansion without facing serious consequences. His assertion that the German people required Lebensraum for growth further justified his aggressive territorial pursuits, culminating in the 1939 invasion of Poland, a decisive act that triggered World War II.
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