The quoted statement preserves Churchill's long record of opposition to communism. Nazi Germany's attack on the Soviet Union changed the immediate strategic calculation because any state continuing the fight against Nazism could reduce pressure on Britain. Churchill therefore promises aid to Russia and its people. The resulting Arctic convoys imposed heavy demands on British forces that were already thinly stretched. The decision is still presented as strategically sound and consistent with the traditional balance-of-power maxim that an enemy's enemy can become a necessary partner.
Notable Point · 7:00-7:55
Aiding the Soviet Union despite Arctic convoy costs
Churchill's pledge to help the Soviet Union shows ideological hostility yielding to coalition strategy, even though Arctic convoys further stretched British forces.