Declaration on the Formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
There, in the camp of capitalism – national enmity and inequality, colonial slavery and chauvinism, national oppression and pogroms, imperialist atrocities and wars.
Here, in the camp of socialism – mutual trust and peace, national freedom and equality, peaceful coexistence and fraternal cooperation of peoples.
The attempts of the capitalist world over the course of decades to resolve the nationalities question by combining the free development of peoples with the system of the exploitation of man by man proved fruitless. On the contrary, the tangle of national contradictions is becoming ever more entangled, threatening the very existence of capitalism. The bourgeoisie proved powerless to establish cooperation among peoples.
Only in the camp of the soviets, only under the conditions of the dictatorship of the proletariat, which rallied around itself the majority of the population, was it possible to destroy national oppression at its root, to create an atmosphere of mutual trust and to lay the foundations of fraternal cooperation among peoples.
Only thanks to these circumstances were the Soviet republics able to repel the attacks of the imperialists of the whole world, internal and external; only thanks to these circumstances were they able successfully to eliminate the civil war, ensure their existence and begin peaceful economic construction.
But the years of war did not pass without a trace. Devastated fields, halted factories, destroyed productive forces and exhausted economic resources left as a legacy by the war make insufficient the separate efforts of individual republics in economic construction. The restoration of the national economy proved impossible with the separate existence of the republics.
On the other hand, the instability of the international situation and the danger of new attacks make inevitable the creation of a united front of the Soviet republics in the face of the capitalist encirclement.
Finally, the very structure of Soviet power, international in its class nature, impels the working masses of the Soviet republics onto the path of unification into a single socialist family.
All these circumstances imperatively demand the unification of the Soviet republics into a single union state capable of ensuring both external security and internal economic prosperity, and the freedom of national development of peoples.
The will of the peoples of the Soviet republics, who recently assembled at the congresses of their soviets and unanimously adopted a decision on the formation of the "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics", serves as a reliable guarantee that this Union is a voluntary association of equal peoples, that each republic is ensured the right of free secession from the Union, that access to the Union is open to all socialist Soviet republics, both existing and those that may arise in the future, that the new union state will be a worthy crowning of the foundations of peaceful coexistence and fraternal cooperation of peoples laid down as far back as October 1917, that it will serve as a reliable bulwark against world capitalism and a new decisive step along the path of uniting the working people of all countries into a World Socialist Soviet Republic.
Declaring all this before the whole world and solemnly proclaiming the immutability of the foundations of Soviet power, which found their expression in the constitutions of the socialist Soviet republics that empowered us, we, the delegates of these republics, on the basis of the powers given to us, resolve to sign the treaty on the formation of the "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics".
Treaty on the Formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
The Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (RSFSR), the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic (USSR), the Belorussian Socialist Soviet Republic (BSSR) and the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (TSFSR – Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia) conclude this Union Treaty on unification into a single union state – the "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics" – on the following grounds.
1. The jurisdiction of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, represented by its supreme bodies, shall include:
а) representation of the Union in international relations;
б) alteration of the external borders of the Union;
в) conclusion of treaties on the admission of new republics into the Union;
г) declaration of war and conclusion of peace;
д) conclusion of external state loans;
е) ratification of international treaties;
ж) establishment of systems of foreign and domestic trade;
з) establishment of the foundations and the general plan of the entire national economy of the Union, as well as the conclusion of concession agreements;
и) regulation of transport and postal and telegraph affairs;
к) establishment of the foundations of the organization of the armed forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics;
л) approval of the single state budget of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, establishment of the coinage, monetary and credit system, as well as the system of all-Union, republican and local taxes;
m) establishment of the general principles of land organization and land use, as well as the use of mineral resources, forests and waters throughout the territory of the Union;
n) general Union legislation on resettlement;
o) establishment of the principles of the organization of courts and judicial procedure, as well as civil and criminal Union legislation;
p) establishment of the fundamental laws on labor;
r) establishment of the general principles of public education;
s) establishment of general measures in the field of public health protection;
t) establishment of the system of measures and weights;
u) organization of all-Union statistics;
f) fundamental legislation in the field of Union citizenship with regard to the rights of foreigners;
kh) the right of general amnesty;
ts) annulment of decisions of congresses of Soviets, Central Executive Committees and Councils of People's Commissars of the union republics that violate the Union Treaty.
2. The supreme body of authority of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is the Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and in the periods between congresses — the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
3. The Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is composed of representatives of city Soviets at the rate of 1 deputy per 25000 voters and representatives of provincial congresses of Soviets at the rate of 1 deputy per 125000 inhabitants.
4. Delegates to the Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are elected at provincial congresses of Soviets.
5. Regular congresses of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are convened by the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics once a year; extraordinary congresses are convened by the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on its own decision or at the demand of not less than two union republics.
6. The Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics elects the Central Executive Committee from representatives of the union republics in proportion to the population of each, with a total membership of 371 members.
7. Regular sessions of the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are convened three times a year. Extraordinary sessions are convened by decision of the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the Union or at the demand of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, as well as of the Central Executive Committee of one of the union republics.
8. Congresses of Soviets and sessions of the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are convened in the capitals of the union republics in the manner established by the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
9. The Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics elects the Presidium, which is the supreme body of authority of the Union in the periods between sessions of the Central Executive Committee of the Union.
10. The Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is elected with a membership of 19 members, of whom the Central Executive Committee of the Union elects four chairmen of the Central Executive Committee of the Union, corresponding to the number of union republics.
11. The executive body of the Central Executive Committee of the Union is the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Sovnarkom of the Union), elected by the Central Executive Committee of the Union for the term of the latter's powers, composed of:
The Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union,
Deputy Chairmen,
People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs,
People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs,
People's Commissar for Foreign Trade,
People's Commissar for Railways,
People's Commissar for Posts and Telegraphs,
People's Commissar for the Workers' and Peasants' Inspection,
Chairman of the Supreme Council of the National Economy,
People's Commissar for Labor,
People's Commissar for Food,
People's Commissar for Finance.
12. In order to establish revolutionary legality on the territory of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and to unite the efforts of the union republics in the struggle against counter-revolution, a Supreme Court is established under the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, with the functions of supreme judicial control, and under the Council of People's Commissars of the Union — a united body of the State Political Administration, whose chairman is a member of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union with the right of an advisory vote.
13. Decrees and resolutions of the Sovnarkom of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are binding on all union republics and are carried into execution directly throughout the territory of the Union.
14. Decrees and resolutions of the Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of the Union shall be printed in the languages in common use in the union republics (Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Georgian, Armenian, Turkic).
15. The Central Executive Committees of the union republics shall contest decrees and resolutions of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union before the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, without suspending their execution.
16. Resolutions and orders of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics may be annulled only by the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and its Presidium; orders of individual People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics may be annulled by the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Socialist Republics, its Presidium and the Council of People's Commissars of the Union.
17. Orders of the People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics may be suspended by the central executive committees or the presidiums of the central executive committees of the union republics only in exceptional cases, where the given order is clearly inconsistent with the resolutions of the Council of People's Commissars or the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The Central Executive Committee or the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the union republics shall immediately notify the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the corresponding People's Commissar of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics of the suspension of the order.
18. The Council of People's Commissars of the union republics shall consist of:
The Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars,
The Deputy Chairmen,
The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the National Economy,
The People's Commissar of Agriculture,
The People's Commissar of Food,
The People's Commissar of Finance,
The People's Commissar of Labour,
The People's Commissar of Internal Affairs,
The People's Commissar of Justice,
The People's Commissar of the Workers' and Peasants' Inspection,
The People's Commissar of Education,
The People's Commissar of Health,
The People's Commissar of Social Welfare,
The People's Commissar for Nationalities, and also, with the right of an advisory vote, the authorized representatives of the People's Commissariats of the Union: for Foreign Affairs, for Military and Naval Affairs, for Foreign Trade, for Railways, and for Posts and Telegraphs.
19. The Supreme Council of the National Economy and the people's commissariats of food, finance, labour and the workers' and peasants' inspection of the union republics, being directly subordinate to the Central Executive Committees and Councils of People's Commissars of the union republics, shall in their activities be guided by the orders of the corresponding People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
20. The republics forming part of the Union shall have their own budgets, which are constituent parts of the all-Union budget approved by the Central Executive Committee of the Union. The budgets of the republics, in their revenue and expenditure parts, shall be established by the Central Executive Committee of the Union. The list of revenues and the amounts of revenue deductions going to form the budgets of the union republics shall be determined by the Central Executive Committee of the Union.
21. A single union citizenship is established for the citizens of the union republics.
22. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics has its own flag, coat of arms and state seal.
23. The capital of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is the city of Moscow.
24. The union republics shall make changes in their constitutions in accordance with this Treaty.
25. The approval, amendment and supplementation of the Union Treaty shall be the exclusive competence of the Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
26. Each of the union republics retains the right to freely secede from the Union.