Genoa, Conference

Genoa, Conference of

(1922) Post–World War I meeting at Genoa, Italy, to discuss the economic reconstruction of Central and Eastern Europe and to improve relations between Soviet Russia and Western Europe. Representatives of 30 European countries sought ways to enlist foreign capital for the “restoration of Russia.” Negotiations broke down when France and Belgium, Russia's main creditors, insisted on repayment of prewar loans and restitution of confiscated foreign-owned property in Russia. Announcement of the German-Soviet Treaty of Rapallo further strained relations.