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It Happened Today: January 13, 1953, Marshal Tito becomes president of Yugoslavia

Tito managed to stay out of the tensions between East and West, promoting the so-called "Third Path". He adopted a communist model distant from the Soviet one. The marshal governed until 1980, keeping the many ethnic groups of the Slavic nation united. Upon his death, the ethnic and national tensions that led to the disintegration of Yugoslavia resurfaced

It Happened Today: January 13, 1953, Marshal Tito becomes president of Yugoslavia

71 years ago, on January 13, 1953, the charismatic marshal Josip Broz, known as Tito, was elected president of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. This event represented a crucial step for the Balkan country, which had just overcome the aftermath of the Second World War and was trying to forge its own independent socialist path. Tito's government was communist in style but deviated from the Soviet model by inaugurating the self-management of factories, a non-aligned foreign policy, and above all keeping a country of a thousand different ethnic groups united.

Tito took the place of Ivan Ribar and he remained in office for almost 30 years, until May 4, 1980, the day of his death. With his passing, the ethnic and national tensions that led to the disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 90s resurfaced.

Co-founder of the communist party and partisan resistance

Before assuming power, Tito was co-founder of the Yugoslav Communist Party in 1920, at the age of 28.

During the Second World War, led the partisan resistance against the German occupation, with the support of the Allies. In this period, Yugoslav forces and the Red Army participated in the deportation and mass killing of ethnic German populations considered collaborators. The Italian population of Istria, summarily considered fascist, suffered the massacres of the foibe.

After the war, he won the elections of 11 November 1945 as leader of the National Front, becoming prime minister and foreign minister.

The break with Stalin

In 1948, Tito, eager to build a strong and independent economy for Yugoslavia, distinguished himself as the first and only communist leader to challenge Stalin and the Cominform. Membership of the Cominform required Tito to totally obey the Kremlin line, but he, strengthened by the liberation of Yugoslavia from the Nazi-fascist occupation, preferred maintain independence from Stalin's control.

January 13, 1953: Tito becomes president

The 13 January 1953, Tito was elected president of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, further cementing his role as an influential leader and key figure in the country. The Marshal succeeded Ivan Ribar, de jure leader of the Republic since the end of the Second World War. His election represented an important step in the process of political stabilization and consolidation of power in post-war Yugoslavia. Tito, already head of the Yugoslav Communist Party, embodied national unity and resistance during the war, thus earning the trust of the Yugoslav people.

Under the presidency of Tito, the Yugoslavia transformed into a federal state with a communist regime, remarkably different from the Soviet model. This transformation involved theself-management of factories in the economic aspect and significant changes in relations with religious authorities and in foreign policy.

The “Titoism”

The period of Tito's presidency is often associated with concept of “Titoism”, a form of socialism characterized by neutrality in the Cold War and independence from the Soviet sphere of influence. The marshal tried to keep Yugoslavia out of tensions between East and West, maintaining a non-aligned foreign policy and promoting the so-called "Third Path".

Yugoslavia, during his government, in fact, distanced himself from the Soviet Union, withdrawing from the Warsaw Pact and becoming leaders of "non-aligned" countries, which were states formally equidistant from the two opposing blocs during the Cold War.

Furthermore, during his tenure, Tito actively promoted the concept of worker self-management, a unique economic system that gave workers direct control of the means of production. This policy was supposed to guarantee greater participation of the working class in economic decisions and contribute to the construction of a socialist society based on equality.

The death and dissolution of Yugoslavia

Tito's presidency is often remembered as an era of relative stability and economic prosperity for Yugoslavia. His rule lasted until his death in 1980.

Regardless of the judgment on the political figure of Marshal Tito, his success in keeping together a country characterized by ethnic diversity. In fact, with his passing, ethnic and national tensions emerged which led to the dissolution of Yugoslavia through the Balkan wars of the nineties.

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