Moscow Protocol ( cz, Moskevský protokol and sk, Moskovský protokol, officially ''Protocol of the negotiations of the ČSSR and

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

delegations'') was a document signed by

Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) **Fourth Czechoslovak Repub ...

political leaders in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, after the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring ( cs, Pražské jaro, sk, Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Se ...

. The negotiations took place from 23 to 26 August 1968. The main signatories were President

Ludvík Svoboda Ludvík Svoboda (25 November 1895 – 20 September 1979) was a Czech general and politician. He fought in both World Wars, for which he was regarded as a national hero,

, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the

Communist Party of Czechoslovakia The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (Czech language, Czech and Slovak language, Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed be ...

Alexander Dubček Alexander Dubček (; 27 November 1921 – 7 November 1992) was a Slovak politician who served as the First Secretary of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ) (''de facto'' leader of Czechoslovak ...

, Prime Minister

Oldřich Černík Oldřich Černík (October 27, 1921 – October 19, 1994) was a Czechoslovak Communist political figure. He was the prime minister of Czechoslovakia from April 8, 1968, to January 28, 1970. A party official and well-known technocrat, Černík ...

, Chairman of the National Assembly Josef Smrkovský and most of the ministers and Communist Party leaders (

Gustáv Husák Gustáv Husák (, , ; 10 January 1913 – 18 November 1991) was a Czechoslovak communist politician of Slovak origin, who served as the long-time First Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1969 to 1987 and the president o ...

among them). The only person present at the negotiations who declined to sign was

František Kriegel František Kriegel (10 April 1908 — 3 December 1979) was a Czechoslovak politician, physician, and a member of the Communist Party reform wing of Prague Spring (1968). He was the only one of the political leaders who, during the Warsaw Pact inva ...

. The document included among its many expectations, promises to protect socialism in Czechoslovakia, to act upon the promises made in the

Bratislava Declaration The Bratislava Declaration was the result of the conference held in Bratislava on 3 August 1968 by the representatives of the Communist and Worker's parties of Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, the USSR, and Czechoslovakia. The decl ...

, to denounce the 14th Party Congress and its resolutions, to restrain critical Czechoslovak media, and to reject any interference in the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

by the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

References

Treaties of the Soviet Union Czechoslovakia–Soviet Union relations 1968 in the Soviet Union Treaties concluded in 1968 Treaties of Czechoslovakia Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia {{Czechoslovakia-stub