Fascist Foreign Policy (1926-1940)

Question 1

What were Mussolini’s key foreign policy aims?

Answer 1

Build a New Roman Empire
Restore prestige
Dominate the Med (‘Mare Nostrum’)
Expand colonial holdings

Question 2

What was the impact of the invasion of Abyssinia (1935-36)?

Answer 2

Short term success
Led to League sanctions
Drove Mussolini closer to Hitler

Question 3

What was the Pact of Steel (1939)?

Answer 3

A military alliance with Nazi Germany
Committing Italy to support Hitler in future conflicts

Question 4

How did foreign policy affect Italy by 1940?

Answer 4

Italy was militarily unprepared and economically weak,yet entered WW2 hoping for territorial gains