The first military confrontation of Cold War

In November 1944, six ministers of the EAM, most of whom were KKE (Greek communist Party )members, resigned from their positions in the "National Unity" Government. Fighting broke out in Athens on 3 December 1944 during a demonstration, organised by EAM, involving more than 100,000 people. According to some accounts, the police, covered by British troops opened fire on the crowd.  According to other accounts, it is uncertain if the first shots were fired by the police or the demonstrators.  More than 28 people were killed and 148 injured. The the December events  as this incident is known, was the beginning of a 37-day full-scale fighting in Athens between ELAS and the Government forces.

The British tried to stay neutral but when the battle escalated they intervened, with artillery and aircraft being freely used. At the beginning the government had only a few policemen a brigade without heavy weapons and militia units accused of collaboration with the NAZI forces ( group X, also known as Χίτες - Chites). On December 4 Papandreou gave his resignation to the British Commander, General Scoby. His resignation was not accepted by the General By December 12  ELAS was in control of most of Athens and Piraeus . The British, outnumbered, flew in the 4th Infantry Division  from Italy as reinforcements. During the battle with the ELAS, local militias fought alongside the British, triggering a massacre by ELAS fighters. It must be noted that although the British were fighting openly against ELAS in Athens there were no fights in the rest of Greece. In certain cases like Volos some RAF units even gave equipment to ELAS fighters.

Conflicts continued throughout December with the British slowly gaining the upper hand. Curiously,  ELAS  forces in the rest of Greece did not attack the British. It seems that ELAS preferred a legitimate rise to power, but was drawn into the fighting by the indignation and, at the same time, the awe of its fighters after the slaughter on December 3, aiming at establishing its predominance. Only this version of the events can explain the simultaneous struggle against the British, the large-scale ELAS operations against  trotskyists  and other political dissidents in Athens and many contradictory decisions of EAM leaders. Videlicet, KKE's leadership was supporting a doctrine of 'national unity' while eminent members, e.g. Stringos or Makridis and even  George Siantos , were elaborating revolutionary plans.

This outbreak of fighting between Allied forces and an anti-German European resistance movement, while the war in Europe was still being fought, was a serious political problem for Churchill's coalition government of left and right, and caused much protest in the British press and in the House of Commons . To prove his peace-making intention, Churchill himself arrived in Athens on  December 25  and presided over a conference, in which Soviet representatives also participated, to bring about a settlement. It failed because the EAM/ELAS demands were considered excessive and, thus, rejected.It is of most importance at this point to mention Churchill's telegraph to General Scoby in mid-December advising him to "...treat Athnes as an occupied city". By his arrival in the Greek Capital, the evacuation of the British forces and the trial of all NAZI collaborators, that EAM asked for, was not on Churchill's agenda.

In the meanwhile, the Soviet Union remained surprisingly passive about the developments in Greece. True to their " percentages agreement " with Britain, the Soviet delegation in Greece wasn’t encouraging or discouraging EAM’s ambitions, as Greece belonged to the British sphere of influence. Pravda  didn’t mention the clashes at all. If this position of the Soviet leadership had been brought home to KKE’s leadership, the Dekemvriana might have been averted. It seems that Stalin didn’t have the intention to avert the Dekemvriana, as he would profit no matter the outcome. If EAM rose to power, he would gain a country of major strategic value. If not, he could use the British actions in Greece to justify to the Allies any intervention in his own sphere of influence.

By early January ELAS had been driven from Athens. As a result of Churchill's intervention, Papandreou resigned and was replaced by a firm anti-Communist, General  Nikolaos Plastiras . On January 15 , 1945  Scobie agreed to a ceasefire, in exchange for ELAS' withdrawal from its positions at Patras  and Thessaloniki  and its demobilisation in the Peloponnese. This was a severe defeat, but ELAS remained in existence and the KKE  had an opportunity to reconsider its strategy.

KKE's defeat in 1945 was mainly political. The exaltation of terrorism on the communist side made a political settlement even more difficult. The hunting of "collaborators" was extended to people who had not been involved in collaboration. Several Troskyists  had to leave the country to save their lives (e.g. Cornelius Castoriadis  fled to France). After the Athens fighting, KKE support declined sharply, and as a result most of the prominent non-Communists in EAM left the organisation. But terrorism among the right-wing extremist gangs was strengthened.

Does munich pact count as alliance deadkenny? The four states agreed to carve up Czechoslovakia.

GERMANY, the United Kingdom, France and Italy, taking into consideration the agreement, which has been already reached in principle for the cession to Germany of the Sudeten German territory, have agreed on the following terms and conditions governing the said cession and the measures consequent thereon, and by this agreement they each hold themselves responsible for the steps necessary to secure its fulfilment...

http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/imt/munich1.htm