View source for Rodion Malinovsky

{{Short description|Marshal of the Soviet Union (1898–1967)}}
{{family name hatnote|Yakovlevich|[[Malinovsky]]|lang=Eastern Slavic}}
{{use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{tone|date=August 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Rodion Malinovsky
| honorific_prefix    = '''[[Marshal of the Soviet Union]]'''
| image               = Rodion Malinovsky 1 (cropped)(2).jpg
| width               = 
| caption             = Malinovsky in 1958
| office              = [[Minister of Defence (Soviet Union)|Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union]]
| term_start          = 26 October 1957
| term_end            = 31 March 1967
| 1blankname          = President
| 1namedata           = [[Nikita Khrushchev]]<br/>[[Leonid Brezhnev]]
| predecessor         = [[Georgy Zhukov]]
| successor           = [[Andrei Grechko]]
| birth_date          = {{Birth date|1898|11|23|df=y}}
| birth_place         = [[Odessa]], [[Russian Empire]]
| death_date          = {{death date and age|1967|3|31|1898|11|23|df=y}}
| death_place         = [[Moscow]], [[Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic|Russian SFSR]], Soviet Union
| resting_place       = [[Kremlin Wall Necropolis]], Moscow
| spouse              = Larisa (1925–1946), Raisa (1946–1967)
| profession          = 
| party               = [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] (1926–1967)
| allegiance          = {{ubl|{{flagu|Russian Empire|1914}} (1914–1917) |{{flagu|Soviet Russia|1919}} (1919–1922) |{{flagu|Soviet Union|1936}}}} (1922–1967)
| branch              = {{ubl|[[Imperial Russian Army]]|[[Red Army]]|[[Soviet Army]]}}
| serviceyears        = 1914–1967
| rank                = [[Marshal of the Soviet Union]] (1944–1967)
| commands            = [[Southern Front (Soviet Union)|Southern Front]]<br />[[66th Army (Soviet Union)|66th Army]]<br />[[2nd Guards Army]]<br />[[Southwestern Front (Soviet Union)|Southwestern Front]]<br />[[3rd Ukrainian Front]]<br />[[2nd Ukrainian Front]]<br />[[Transbaikal Military District]]<br />[[Far Eastern Military District]]
| battles             = {{tree list}}
* [[World War I]]
* [[Russian Civil War]]
* [[Spanish Civil War]]
* [[World War II]]
** [[Great Patriotic War]]
*** [[Second Battle of Kharkov]]
*** [[Battle of Stalingrad]]
*** [[Dnieper&ndash;Carpathian offensive]]
*** [[First Jassy&ndash;Kishinev offensive]]
*** [[Second Jassy&ndash;Kishinev offensive]]
*** [[Budapest offensive]]
**** [[Siege of Budapest]]
*** [[Bratislava&ndash;Brno offensive]]
** [[Soviet&ndash;Japanese War]]
*** [[Soviet invasion of Manchuria|Manchurian offensive]]
**** [[Khingan–Mukden Operation]]
** [[Soviet occupation of Manchuria|Occupation of Manchuria]]
* [[Cuban Missile Crisis]]
{{tree list/end}}
| awards              = [[Hero of the Soviet Union]] (2)
| native_name_lang    = ru
| native_name         = {{nobold|Родион Малиновский}}
}}

'''Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky''' ({{langx|ru|Родио́н Я́ковлевич Малино́вский}}; {{langx|uk|Родіо́н Я́кович Малино́вський|Rodion Yakovych Malynovskyi}}; {{OldStyleDate|23 November|1898|11 November}} – 31 March 1967) was a Soviet military commander and [[Marshal of the Soviet Union]]. He served as [[Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union]] from 1957 to 1967, during which he oversaw the strengthening of the Soviet Army.

Born to an impoverished Ukrainian household in [[Odessa]], Malinovsky volunteered for the [[Imperial Russian Army]] during the [[World War I|First World War]] and served with distinction in both the [[Eastern Front (World War I)|German Front]] and the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]]. He was serving in the [[Russian Legion]] in France on the outbreak of the [[October Revolution]], after which he returned to Russia and joined the Red Army in the [[Russian Civil War]]. After graduating from the [[Frunze Military Academy]], Malinovsky volunteered to fight on the [[Second Spanish Republic|Republican]] side during the [[Spanish Civil War]], where he again served with great distinction and was later awarded the [[Order of Lenin]] and the [[Order of the Red Banner]] in recognition of his service.

Malinovsky emerged as one of the few competent Soviet generals in the opening phase of the [[Operation Barbarossa|German invasion]]. He played a crucial role in the Soviet victory at Stalingrad in December 1942, and helped drive German troops out of Ukraine following the [[Dnieper–Carpathian offensive]]. He then commanded the Soviet drive into the Balkans, forcing Romania to switch to the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] side, for which he was made a Marshal of the Soviet Union by [[Joseph Stalin]]. He further took part in the liberation of Budapest, [[Vienna offensive|Vienna]] and [[Prague offensive|Prague]], cementing Soviet military supremacy in Central Europe. After the [[German Instrument of Surrender|German surrender]] in May 1945, Malinovsky was transferred to the [[Russian Far East|Far East]], where he defeated the Japanese [[Kwantung Army]] in the [[Soviet invasion of Manchuria]]. He received the Soviet Union's highest distinction, the title [[Hero of the Soviet Union]], as a reward.

After the war, Malinovsky remained in the Far East and held a succession of important commands. After Stalin's death, [[Nikita Khrushchev]] recalled Malinovsky to Moscow and named him commander-in-chief of the [[Soviet Army|Soviet Ground Forces]]. In 1957, he replaced the ousted [[Georgy Zhukov]] as Minister of Defence, a position he served until his death. Malinovsky was a strong advocate for the importance of [[Conventional warfare|conventional forces]], and maintained a delicate balance with Khrushchev's missile-based approach regarding  Soviet military policy. He retained considerable autonomy in military affairs following the fall of Khrushchev in 1964. Malinovsky died in March 1967 from [[pancreatic cancer]], and is remembered as one of the most important military leaders in Russian and Soviet history.

==Early life==

===Before and during World War I===
A [[Ukrainian people |Ukrainian]], Malinovsky was born in [[Odessa]] to a single mother, after his father either died or abandoned the family. The ethnic background of his father is disputed. Some claim he was a [[Karaite Jew]];<ref>Сын маршала Малиновского: «Поприветствовав отца матом, Жуков тут же получил адекватный ответ». fakty.ua (13 февраля 2013). Дата обращения: 29 июля 2023. Архивировано 29 июля 2023 года.</ref> however, others claim he was descended from a noble family in the [[Tambov Governorate]].<ref>Соколов Б. В. По линии Буниных? // Родина, 2011, № 5.</ref> Malinovsky's mother soon left the city for the rural areas of [[Russian Empire|Southern Russia]], and married. Her husband, a [[poverty]]-stricken peasant, refused to adopt her son and expelled him when Malinovsky was only 13 years old. The homeless boy survived by working as a farmhand, and eventually received shelter from his aunt's family in Odessa, where he worked as an errand boy in a general store.
After the start of [[World War I]] in July 1914, Malinovsky, who was only 15 years old at the time (too young for military service), hid on the military train heading for the [[Eastern Front (World War I)|German front]], but was discovered. He nevertheless convinced the commanding officers to enlist him as a volunteer, and served in a [[machine-gun]] detachment in the [[Trench warfare|frontline trenches]]. In October 1915, as a reward for repelling a German attack, he received his first military award, the [[Cross of St. George]] of the 4th class, and was promoted to the rank of [[corporal]]. Soon afterwards, he was badly wounded and spent several months in the hospital.
[[file:Rodion Malinovsky ww1.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Malinovsky during WWI]]

After his recovery, he was sent to [[France]] in 1916 as a member of the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] [[Russian Expeditionary Force in France|Russian Expeditionary Corps]]. Malinovsky fought in a hotly contested sector of the front near [[Fort Brion]] and was promoted to [[sergeant]]. He suffered a serious wound in his left arm, and received a decoration from the French government. After the [[October Revolution|Bolshevik Revolution]] in Russia, the French government disbanded some Russian units, but others were transferred to a newly created unit called the [[Russian Legion]], which was attached to the Moroccan Division. Malinovsky fought against the [[German Empire|Germans]] until the end of the war. During this time, he was awarded the French [[Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France)|Croix de guerre]] and promoted to [[senior NCO]].

===Interwar===
He returned to Odessa in 1919, where he joined the [[Red Army]] in the [[Russian Civil War|Civil War]] against the [[White movement|White Army]] and fought with distinction in [[Siberia]]. He remained in the army after the end of the conflict, studying in the training school for the junior commanders, and rose to commander of a rifle battalion. In 1926, he became a member of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]], membership of which was a prerequisite for promotion in the military.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

In 1927, Malinovsky was sent to study at the elite [[Frunze Military Academy]]. He graduated in 1930, and during the next seven years he rose to the [[Chief of staff (military)|Chief of Staff]] of the 3rd Cavalry Corps, where his commander was [[Semyon Timoshenko]] (a protégé of [[Joseph Stalin]]).
   
After the start of the [[Spanish Civil War]] in 1936, Malinovsky volunteered to fight for the [[Second Spanish Republic|Republicans]] against the right-wing nationalists of General [[Francisco Franco]] and their [[Fascism in Italy|Italian]] and [[Nazi Germany|German]] allies. He participated in planning and directing several main operations. In 1938, he returned to [[Moscow]], being awarded the top Soviet decorations, the [[Order of Lenin]] and the [[Order of the Red Banner]], in recognition of his service in Spain; he was appointed a senior lecturer at the [[Frunze Military Academy]].

In the spring of 1941, Timoshenko, who then served the [[Sovnarkom|People's Commissar for Defence]], was alarmed by the massive German military buildup on the Soviet borders, as the [[Wehrmacht]] was secretly preparing for [[Operation Barbarossa]]. In order to strengthen the Red Army field command, he dispatched some of the top officers from the military academies to the field units. Malinovsky was promoted to [[Major General]], and took command over the freshly raised [[48th Rifle Corps (Soviet Union)|48th Rifle Corps]], [[9th Army (Soviet Union)|9th Army]] in the [[Odessa Military District]]. A week prior to the start of the war, Malinovsky deployed his corps close to the [[Romania]]n border.

==World War II==

===Early assignments===
After Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, with the Red Army suffering enormous defeats and losing hundreds of thousands of troops in German encirclements, Malinovsky emerged a competent general. His corps of three partly formed rifle divisions faced German [[Blitzkrieg]] along the line of the [[Prut River]]. While, as a rule, Red Army generals would lead their forces from behind the frontline, Malinovsky went to the crucial sectors of the battles to be with his soldiers and encourage them. Unable to stop the  Wehrmacht, Malinovsky had to retreat along the [[Black Sea]] shore, while frustrating enemy attempts to encircle his troops. The Germans succeeded in cornering his corps in [[Mykolaiv|Nikolaev]], but Malinovsky breached their ring and retreated to [[Dnipropetrovsk]].

In August, he was promoted to Chief of Staff of the badly battered [[6th Army (Soviet Union)|6th Army]], and soon replaced its commander. He halted the German advance in his section of the front and was promoted to [[Lieutenant General]]. After the retreat of the Red Army to the [[Donbas]], Malinovsky commanded a joint operation of the 6th and 12th armies, managing to drive the Wehrmacht out of the region. In December 1941, Malinovsky received command of the [[Southern Front (Soviet Union)|Southern Front]], consisting of three weak field armies and two division-sized cavalry corps. They were short of manpower and equipment, but Malinovsky managed to push deep into the defenses of the Germans, who, after 6 months of fighting, were suffering from fatigue and shortages as well.

===Battle of Kharkov===
On 12 May 1942, Malinovsky and the [[Southwestern Front (Soviet Union)|Southwestern Front]], under the overall command of Timoshenko, launched a joint attack in the [[Second Battle of Kharkov]] pushing the Germans back {{convert|100|km}}. Timoshenko overestimated the Red Army's offensive capabilities and suffered a heavy defeat. Although Stalin, in spite of opposition by his top military advisers, supported the ill-fated Kharkov attack, he became suspicious that Malinovsky had intentionally failed his troops (he feared that Malinovsky had established and kept connections with foreign interests during his World War I stay in France). In July 1942, the Southern Front was taken out of combat, its units and staff were transferred to the [[North Caucasian Front]] as a [[Don Operational Group]] under the command of Malinovsky (who also became Front's deputy commander). Stalin ordered Malinovsky to stop the intrusion of the German [[Army Group A]] towards [[Rostov-on-Don]] and the vital oilfields of [[Caucasus]]; the Germans had a sizeable technical superiority over Malinovsky, and cut through his weak defenses. As a consequence, [[Stavka]] disbanded the Don Operational Group in September.

===Stalingrad and Ukrainian Front===
The Red Army was hard-pressed by Germans in the [[Battle of Stalingrad]], and Stalin entrusted Malinovsky with the command of the hastily formed [[66th Army (Soviet Union)|66th Army]] to hold positions north-east of Stalingrad. At the same time Stalin ordered [[Nikita Khrushchev]], who served as his top political officer in Stalingrad, to "keep an eye" on Malinovsky.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

The 66th Army had no combat experience, but this was the first time in the war Malinovsky had commanded a unit that was near full strength in both troops and equipment. In September and October 1942, he went on the offensive. His territorial gains were marginal, but he denied the Germans an opportunity to encircle Stalingrad from the north, and, slowed down, they decided to push into the city. Later that month, Stavka dispatched Malinovsky to the [[Voronezh Front]] as its deputy commander; in December 1942, he was sent back to [[Stalingrad]]. There the Red Army achieved its greatest success to that point in the war: on 22 November the Red Army fronts encircled the [[6th Army (Wehrmacht)|German Sixth Army]]. The German [[Army Group Don]], commanded by Field Marshal [[Erich von Manstein]], gathered its [[Panzer]] troops in the town of [[Kotelnikovo, Volgograd Oblast|Kotelnikovo]] {{convert|150|km}} west of Stalingrad and launched a desperate counterattack to save the Sixth Army.

Malinovsky led the powerful [[Soviet Second Guards Army]] against [[Hermann Hoth|Hoth]]. In vicious fighting he forced the Germans to retreat, breached deeply echeloned and well-prepared German defenses, and destroyed the Kotelnikovo army grouping. It was the first World War II large-scale clash of armor to be lost by Germany. Malinovsky's victory sealed the fate of 250,000 German and other [[Axis powers]] soldiers trapped in the Stalingrad pocket. Stalin promoted Malinovsky to colonel general, and awarded him with the highest Soviet decoration for outstanding generalship — the [[Order of Suvorov]] of the 1st degree.

In February 1943, Malinovsky resumed his command of Southern Front, and in less than two weeks he expelled Manstein from Rostov-on-Don, opening the road to Ukraine to the Red Army. In March 1943, Stalin elevated him to rank of [[Army General (Soviet rank)|Army General]] and gave him command of Southwestern Front, tasked to drive German troops away from the industrially rich [[Donbas]]. Through a sudden attack in mid-October, Malinovsky managed to surprise a large German force in the region's key city of [[Zaporizhia]] and captured it. The campaign split German forces in the South and isolated German forces in [[Crimea]] from the rest of the German [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]].

On 20 October, the Southwestern Front was renamed  [[3rd Ukrainian Front]]. From December 1943 to April 1944, Malinovsky smashed the German [[Army Group South]], and [[Battle of West Ukraine (1944)|liberated much of the southern]] [[Ukraine]], including [[Kherson]], [[Mykolaiv|Nikolaev]] and his home city of Odessa. By that time, according to Khrushchev's opinion, Stalin grew much more confident of Malinovsky's loyalty.

===Romania and Hungary===
[[File:Маршал Советского Союза Родион Яковлевич Малиновский.jpg|thumb|Malinovsky in 1944]]
In May 1944, Malinovsky was transferred to the [[2nd Ukrainian Front]]. He expelled the Germans from the remaining Soviet territory and participated in an unsuccessful invasion of the [[Balkans]] (the [[first Jassy–Kishinev Offensive]]) together with Marshal [[Ivan Konev]] and  Army General [[Fyodor Tolbukhin]] (who received Malinovsky's former command over the smaller 3rd Ukrainian Front). However, during the [[Jassy–Kishinev Offensive (August 1944)|second Jassy–Kishinev Offensive]] in late August and early September 1944, Malinovsky unleashed a highly successful Soviet version of the [[Blitzkrieg]]. Together with Tolbukhin, he destroyed or captured some 215,000 German,<ref>{{cite book |language=de |first=K. W. |last=Böhme |title=Die deutschen Kriegsgefangenen in sowjetischer Hand. Eine Bilanz |location=München |year=1966 |page=112 |oclc=246020642 }}</ref> and 200,000 Romanian troops,<ref>{{cite news |language=de |work=Siebenbürgische Zeitung |url=http://www.siebenbuerger.de/sbz/sbz/news/1093160289,50778,.html |title=Ein schwarzer Tag für die Deutschen |date=22 August 2004 }}</ref> forcing Romania to overthrow pro-German ''[[Conducător]]'' [[Ion Antonescu]], and switch from the Axis to the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] camp (''see [[Romania during World War II]]''). A triumphant Stalin recalled Malinovsky to Moscow, and on 10 September 1944 made him [[Marshal of the Soviet Union]]. Malinovsky was also nominal head of the [[Allied Commission]] in Romania (represented by [[Vladislav Petrovich Vinogradov]]).<ref>{{cite book |language=ro |first=Adrian |last=Cioroianu |author-link=Adrian Cioroianu |title=Pe umerii lui Marx. O introducere în istoria comunismului românesc |publisher=[[Editura Curtea Veche]] |location=Bucharest |year=2005 |page=59 |isbn=973-669-175-6 }}</ref>

He continued his offensive drive, crossed the [[Southern Carpathians]] into [[Transylvania]] (entering [[Hungary|Hungarian]]-ruled [[Northern Transylvania]]), and on 20 October 1944, captured [[Debrecen]], defended by a large Axis force. His troops were tired after several months of combat and needed to be replenished and resupplied, but Stalin ordered Malinovsky to [[Battle of Budapest|take the Hungarian capital Budapest]], in order to open the road to Vienna and take Vienna before the [[Allies of World War II|Western Allies]]. With the help of Tolbukhin and the Romanian [[Romanian First Army|First]] and [[Romanian Fourth Army|Fourth]] armies, Malinovsky carried out Stalin's order, and faced [[Adolf Hitler]]'s determination to defend Budapest at any cost. The Germans and their Hungarian [[Arrow Cross Party]] allies tried to turn Budapest into a "German Stalingrad"; Hitler engaged the bulk of his Panzer troops (among them six [[Waffen SS]] divisions and five army Panzer divisions; one-fourth of the Wehrmacht's armor{{citation needed|date=December 2015}}), weakening German forces fighting the Red Army in [[Poland]] and [[Prussia]], as well as those engaging the Western Allies on the [[Rhine]]. Malinovsky's strategic and operational skills enabled him to overcome his troops' weakness and to conquer Budapest on 13 February 1945, following an exceptionally harsh battle. He captured 70,000 prisoners. Continuing his drive westward, Malinovsky routed Germans in Slovakia, liberated [[Bratislava]], on 4 April 1945 captured Vienna, and finally, on 26 April 1945 freed [[Brno]], second largest city in Czechoslovakia.

These new victories established the Soviet's supremacy over the [[Danube|Danubian]] heartland of Europe. In return, Stalin rewarded him with the highest Soviet military decoration of the period, the [[Order of Victory]]. Malinovsky ended his campaign in Europe with the liberation of [[Brno]] in the [[Czechoslovakia|Czech]] lands, observing a jubilant meeting of his and American advance forces.

===Japanese Front and Far East Command===
After the [[German Instrument of Surrender, 1945|German surrender]] in May 1945, Malinovsky was transferred to the [[Russian Far East]], where he was placed in command of the [[Transbaikal Front]]. In August 1945, he led his forces during the last Soviet offensive of the war under the overall command of [[Aleksandr Vasilevsky]]. Vasilevsky's forces invaded [[Manchuria]], which was under the occupation of the 700,000 strong [[Japan]]ese [[Kwantung Army]] and crushed the Japanese in ten days. Malinovsky was awarded the Soviet Union's greatest honor, the order of a [[Hero of the Soviet Union]], and was appointed a member of the [[Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union]] by Stalin himself. Following the Japanese surrender, Malinovsky was made supreme commander of the [[Far Eastern Military District]]. During the [[Soviet occupation of North Korea]], Malinovsky was an influential figure in the establishment and training of the [[Korean People's Army]], and continued to provide support for them during the early phases of the [[Korean War]].

== Minister of Defence ==
[[File:Родион Малиновский на встрече с боевыми товарищами в Монголии.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Malinovsky as Minister of Defence wearing traditional Mongolian clothing during an official visit to Mongolia, 1961]]

After Stalin's death in 1953, Khrushchev became the Soviet leader and, during the [[History of the Soviet Union (1953-1985)|De-Stalinization]] process and the consolidation of his power in the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]], he promoted Malinovsky to Commander-in-Chief of the [[Soviet Ground Forces]] and First Deputy to [[Minister of Defence of Soviet Union|Minister of Defense]] Marshal [[Georgy Zhukov]]. To confirm Malinovsky's high status in the Soviet Party-state hierarchy, he was selected a full member of the Communist Party Central Committee. In October 1957, Khrushchev, who had grown apprehensive of Zhukov's political ambitions, ousted him and entrusted his post as minister to Malinovsky, who served in this position until his death. Although a personal friend of Khrushchev, Malinovsky maintained his independent position regarding military affairs. Khrushchev and several members of the Soviet military establishment were convinced that future wars would be won by [[Nuclear weapons delivery|nuclear missile attack]]. They advocated main investment to the development of the missiles and a drastic reduction of conventional forces. Malinovsky supported the adoption of strategic nuclear missiles, but saw them as a useful deterrent of war, rather than as a main weapon within it. He developed the concept of a broad based military and vigorously argued that while the nature of war had changed, the decisive factor would still be a [[standing army]] proficient in modern military technology and capable of conquering and controlling the enemy's territory. Soviet military policy during these years was a compromise between the views of Malinovsky and of Khrushchev.{{citation needed|date=August 2025}}

The [[Cuban Missile Crisis]], which brought the world to the brink of nuclear catastrophe, alienated Malinovsky. Following the crisis, he publicly demanded in army publications for the military to be given a greater say in formulating Soviet strategic policy. The army's discontent with Khrushchev encouraged a coup within the Party, which resulted in the removal of Khrushchev from power in October 1964.{{citation needed|date=August 2025}} The new Party leadership accepted Malinovsky's demand for an autonomous and professional military establishment, as well as his concept of balanced development of the armed forces. {{citation needed|date=August 2025}}

[[File:Маршал Советского Союза Р. Я. Малиновский принимает парад на Красной площади в Москве.jpg|thumb|Malinovsky takes the salute during the [[1965 Moscow Victory Day Parade]], 9 May 1965.]]
In a meeting in [[Romania]] in November 1964, between USSR and Chinese delegations, Malinovsky worsened Sino-Soviet relations, already deeply frayed in the [[Sino-Soviet split]]. Historian Daniel Leese noted that improvement of the relations "that had seemed possible after Khrushchev's fall evaporated" as they became more elusive after an allegedly drunken Malinovsky approached Chinese Marshal [[He Long]], member of the Chinese delegation to Moscow, and asked when China would finally eliminate [[Mao Zedong]] in the manner in which the [[CPSU]] eliminated Khrushchev, "we‘ve already got rid of Khrushchev, you should get rid of Mao Zedong." Outraged, He Long reported the incident to [[Premier of the People's Republic of China|Premier of China]] [[Zhou Enlai]], who in turn, reported the incident to Soviet Premier [[Leonid Brezhnev]]. China refused to accept the Soviet Union's apology.<ref>Roderick MacFarquhar, The Origins of the Cultural Revolution: The Coming Cataclysm, 1961 – 1965. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997), p.365.</ref><ref>Daniel Leese, ''Mao Cult: Rhetoric and Ritual in China's Cultural Revolution'' (Cambridge University Press, 2011) p.84.</ref><ref>Jan Ludvik, 'Nuclear Asymmetry and Deterrence: Theory, Policy and History' (Routledge, 2017) p.63.</ref>

Malinovsky was a staunch opponent of U.S. involvement in the [[Vietnam War]], accusing the Americans of waging a "murderous war against the Vietnamese people".<ref>{{Cite news |title=Malinovsky Accuses U.S. |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.comhttp//timesmachine.content-tagging.us-east-1-01.prd.dvsp.nyt.net/timesmachine/1966/11/07/82947030.html?pageNumber=13 |access-date=2024-01-21 |work=The New York Times |language=en }}{{Dead link|date=November 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref> In response to escalating U.S. aggression, Malinovsky called for a major Soviet military buildup. He also criticized China's involvement in the war, accusing the Chinese government of obstructing Soviet aid to [[North Vietnam]].<ref>{{Cite news |title=Malinovsky Criticizes Peking |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.comhttp//timesmachine.content-tagging.us-east-1-01.prd.dvsp.nyt.net/timesmachine/1966/04/22/79298967.html?pageNumber=27 |access-date=2024-01-21 |work=The New York Times |language=en }}{{Dead link|date=November 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot }}</ref>

== Death and legacy ==
Malinovsky died from [[pancreatic cancer]] on 31 March 1967. He was honoured with a state funeral and cremated. His urn was placed in the [[Kremlin Wall Necropolis]]. The government gave his name to the leading Soviet [[Military Academy of Tank Troops in Moscow]] and to the [[10th Guards Uralsko-Lvovskaya Tank Division]]. Malinovsky continued to be regarded as one of the most important military leaders in the history of [[Russia]] even after the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]].

==Awards==
;Russian Empire:
{|
|-
|[[File:RUS Georgievsky Krest 3st BAR.svg|60px]]
|[[Cross of St. George (Russia)|Cross of St. George]], 3rd class
|-
|[[File:RUS Georgievsky Krest 4st BAR.svg|60px]]
|[[Cross of St. George (Russia)|Cross of St. George]], 4th class
|-
|}

;Awards of the USSR
{|
|-
|[[File:Hero of the Soviet Union medal.png|20px]] [[File:Hero of the Soviet Union medal.png|20px]]
|[[Hero of the Soviet Union]], twice (8 September 1945, 22 November 1958)
|-
|[[File:OrderVictoryRibbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of Victory]] (No. 8, 26 April 1945)
|-
|[[File:Order of Lenin Ribbon Bar.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of Lenin]], five times (17 July 1937, 6 November 1941, 21 February 1945, 8 September 1945, 22 November 1958)
|-
|[[File:SU Order of the Red Banner ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of the Red Banner]], three times (22 October 1937, 3 November 1944, 15 November 1950)
|-
|[[File:SU Order of Suvorov 1st class ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of Suvorov]], 1st class, twice (January 28, 1943 March 19, 1944)
|-
|[[File:Order kutuzov1 rib.png|60px]]
|[[Order of Kutuzov]], 1st class (17 September 1943)
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Defence of Stalingrad ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Defence of Stalingrad"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Defence of the Caucasus ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Defence of Odessa ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Defence of Odessa"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Capture of Budapest ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Capture of Budapest"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Capture of Vienna ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Capture of Vienna"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal For the Victory over Japan ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Victory over Japan"]]
|-
|[[File:Order of Glory Ribbon Bar.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945 ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Jubilee Medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal 30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Jubilee Medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy"]]
|-
|[[File:SU Medal 40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Jubilee Medal "40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR"]]
|-
|}

;Foreign Awards
{|
|-
|[[File:Medaille voor de 25e Verjaardag van de Volksrevolutie Mongolië 1946.jpg|40px]]
|Medal "25 Years of the Mongolian People's Revolution" (Mongolia, 1946)
|-
|[[File:OrdenSuheBator.png|60px]]
|[[Order of Sukhbaatar]] (Mongolia, 1961)
|-
|[[File:OrdenZnam.png|60px]]
|[[Order of the Red Banner]] (Mongolia, 1945)
|-
|[[File:Medal for victory over japan rib.PNG|60px]]
|Medal "For Victory over Japan" (Mongolia, 1946)
|-
|[[File:Order of the National Hero BAR.png|60px]]
|[[Order of the People's Hero]] (Yugoslavia, 27 May 1964)
|-
|[[File:Order of the partisan star with golden wreath Rib.png|60px]]
|Golden [[Order of the Partisan Star (Yugoslavia)|Order of the Partisan Star]] (Yugoslavia, 1956)
|-
|[[File:Order of the White Lion.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of the White Lion]], 1st class (Czechoslovakia, 1945)
|-
|[[File:TCH CS Vojensky Rad Bileho Lva 1st (1945) BAR.svg|60px]]
|[[Military Order of the White Lion]], 1st class (Czechoslovakia, 1945)
|-
|[[File:Czechoslovak War Cross 1939-1945 Ribbon.png|60px]]
|[[Czechoslovak War Cross 1939–1945|Czechoslovak War Cross]] (Czechoslovakia, 1945)
|-
|[[File:CS Dukielski Medal Pamiatkowy.jpg|60px]]
|Medal "In Commemoration of the [[Battle of Dukla Pass]] (Czechoslovakia, 1959)
|-
|[[File:Order of the Slovak National Uprising 3 kl.png|60px]]
|Medal "25 Years of the Slovak National Uprising" (Czechoslovakia, 1965)
|-
|[[File:US Legion of Merit Chief Commander ribbon.png|60px]]
|Chief Commander, [[Legion of Merit]] (USA, 1946)
|-
|[[File:Legion Honneur GO ribbon.svg|60px]]
|Grand Officer of the [[Legion d'Honneur]] (France, 1945)
|-
|[[File:Croix de Guerre 1914-1918 ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Croix de guerre 1914–1918|Croix de guerre]] (France, 1916)
|-
|[[File:Croix de Guerre 1939-1945 ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Croix de guerre 1939–1945|Croix de guerre]] (France, 1945)
|-
|[[File:Order of the Defense of the Fatherland ribbon Romania.png|60px]]
|Order of the Defense of the Fatherland, 1st, 2nd and 3rd Classes (Romania, all in 1950)
|-
|[[File:Medal For the Liberation From the Fascist Yoke ribbon.png|60px]]
|Medal "For the Liberation From the Fascist Yoke" (Romania, 1950)
|-
|[[File:HUN Order of Merit of the Hungarian Rep (military) 1class BAR.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary]], 1st class ([[Hungarian Republic (1946–49)|Hungarian Republic]], 1947)
|-
|[[File:HUN Order of Merit of the Hungarian People's Republic BAR.png|60px]]
|Order of the Hungarian Merit, twice (1950 and 1965)
|-
|[[File:HUN Order of the Hungarian freedom.png|60px]]
|Order of the Hungarian Freedom (1946)
|-
|[[File:Bintang Republik Indonesia Adipradana Ribbon1.gif|60px]]
|Star of the Republic of Indonesia, 2nd Class (Indonesia, 1963)
|-
|[[File:Bintang Yudha Dharma Nararya.jpg|60px]]
|The Grand Meritorious Military Order, 1st Class (Indonesia, 1962)
|-
|[[File:20thAnniversaryRibbon.jpg|60px]]
|Medal "20 Years of the Bulgarian People's Army" (1964)
|-
|[[File:Order of Resplendent Banner with Special Grand Cordon ribbon.png|60px]]
|[[Order of the Cloud and Banner|Order of the Resplendent Banner]], 1st class (China, 1946)
|-
|[[File:Sino Soviet Friendship Ribbon.svg|60px]]
|[[Medal of Sino-Soviet Friendship]] ([[China]], 1956)
|-
|[[File:MAR Order of the Military - Special Class BAR.png|60px]]
|[[Sharifian Order of Military Merit|Order of Military Merit]], 1st Class (Morocco, 1965)
|-
|[[File:DPRK ribbon bar - Order of National Flag 1st Class.svg|60px]]
|[[Order of the National Flag]], 1st class (North Korea, 1948){{citation needed|date=October 2015}}
|-
|[[File:Ribbon Medal For The Liberation Of Korea.png|60px]]
|[[Medal for the Liberation of Korea]] (1948)
|-
|{{center|?}}
|Commemorative Order "40th Anniversary Of Fatherland Liberation War Victory" (North Korea, 1985, posthumous)
|-
|[[File:GDR Brotherhood in Arms Medal - Gold BAR.png|60px]]
|Medal "Brotherhood in Arms", 1st class (East Germany, 1966)
|-
|{{center|?}}
|Cross of Independence (Mexico, 1964)
|-
|}

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
{{More footnotes|date=September 2009}}
* {{cite book |first=John |last=Erikson |chapter=Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky |editor-first=Harold |editor-last=Shukman |title=Stalin's Generals |publisher=Grove Press |location=New York |year=1993 |isbn=0-8021-1487-3 }}
* {{cite book |first=David M. |last=Glantz |title=The Soviet Strategic Offensive in Manchuria, 1945. 'August Storm' |publisher=Frank Cass |location=London |year=2003 |isbn=0-7146-5279-2 }}
* {{cite book |first=Mark |last=Shteinberg |title=Evrei v voinakh tysiachiletii |location=Moscow, Jerusalem |year=2005 |pages=316–318 }}
* {{cite book |first=Joseph E. Jr. |last=Thach |chapter=Malinovskii, Rodion Yakovlevich |title=The Modern Encyclopedia of Russian and Soviet History |volume=21 }}
* {{cite book |first=Alexander |last=Werth |title=Russia At War, 1941–1945 |publisher=Carroll & Graf |location=New York |year=1999 |isbn=0-7867-0722-4 }}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{cite web |title=Monument to Malinovsky in Odessa |url=http://www.odessaguide.net/sights_monumenttomalinovskiy.en.html}}
* [http://www.ets.ru/e/pk000083.htm Colour poster and biography from site of ETS Publishing House]
* {{PM20|FID=pe/019354}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{succession box
|title=[[Minister of Defence of Soviet Union]]
|before=[[Georgy Zhukov]]
|after=[[Andrei Grechko]]
|years=1957–1967
}}
{{s-end}}

{{Battle of Stalingrad |People}}
{{Marshals of the Soviet Union}}
{{Soviet Defence Ministers}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malinovsky, Rodion}}
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