<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II" id="mwAQI" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="World War II">World War II</a>: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazi_Germany" id="mwAQM" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Nazi Germany">Nazi Germany</a> and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_Union" id="mwAQQ" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Soviet Union">Soviet Union</a> sign the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov–Ribbentrop_Pact" id="mwAQU" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact">Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact</a>. In a secret protocol to the pact, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Polish_Republic" id="mwAQY" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Second Polish Republic">Poland</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finland" id="mwAQc" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Finland">Finland</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estonia" id="mwAQg" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Estonia">Estonia</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latvia" id="mwAQk" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Latvia">Latvia</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithuania" id="mwAQo" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Lithuania">Lithuania</a>, and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Romania" id="mwAQs" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Kingdom of Romania">Romania</a> are divided into German and Soviet "spheres of influence".<sup about="#mwt41" class="mw-ref reference" data-mw='{"name":"ref","attrs":{"name":"mrtext"},"body":{"id":"mw-reference-text-cite_note-mrtext-5"}}' id="cite_ref-mrtext_5-0" rel="dc:references" typeof="mw:Extension/ref"><a href="./August_23#cite_note-mrtext-5" id="mwAQw" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 5;"><span class="mw-reflink-text" id="mwAQ0">[5]</span></a></sup>