What If:

He is quickly assassinated by loyalist enemies in Moscow. Stalin's ghost is strong, and he had many lackies. No one's going to let a wacky weasel like Trotsky stay long.

On the remote sliver of chance he outlasted assassination attempts and managed to build a loyal network? He would purge all enemies, maintain the gulags, and set about fomenting revolutions in other countries, by hook or by crook. Some attention to internal development could be left to the Politburo, of course. Basically what Stalin would do except more outwardly aggressive military aims. Stalin was a plotting shadowy type, Trotsky was more balls to the wall.

Forgot to add something like this: It would be bloody, maybe drawn out over decades, but Trotsky would ultimately bring it down. You can't be against the whole world and win. Well, unless you had nukes... no doubt they'd try to steal plans as they did IRL, but I don't think they'd have been as successful at it, nor at turning plans into product. Perhaps they could, but it would take longer and still be a pipe dream.

No. In fact, probably something alongside these Trotsky was way too committed to world revolution and socialism in every country

There were already plenty of fears about Bolshevism/communist revolutionaries in the West, and if the USSR was actively pushing forth during peacetime (Stalin got away with a lot in terms of creating the Eastern Bloc), you can bet that the likes of Britain and the US would find the virulently anti-communist regime of Fascist Italy, (Nazi Germany and Francoist Spain IF Trotsky and his state would survive that long) to be like-minded and happy to fight

Fascism would be seen as necessary allies against Trotsky's world revolution. Hitler would reinstate the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, but no Lebenraum.

>implying Hitler would ever come to power if Trotsky was in charge

since the consensus ITT seems to be that a Trotsky-led Soviet Union would quickly collapse, what effect would that have on geopolitics to come?

first off, wtf happens to Russia? do they try to introduce democracy - and a republic or constitutional monarchy? Soviets did a good job getting rid of all possible political opposition, so I feel like this would have to be a White emigre government in the short-term
and all the nationalist movements that briefly had independence during the civil war (i.e. Ukraine, Belarus, the Caucasus) would be seriously backed by the Allies in this situation to neutralize Russia - perhaps more of a breakdown (i.e. the North Caucasus, Tatarstan, giving Finland Karelia)

Eastern Europe, especially countries like Poland/Czechoslovakia/Romania with large populations/territories/industry, would benefit without socialism; and could reach parity with Western Europe
how would Yugoslavia do without Tito?

this one's a bit too big to elaborate on, but how would left-wing radicalism in the West develop?

and how about Germany? would it be politically/economically rehabilitated once Russia became the new aggressor? would all this have any effect on Hitler and the Nazis in their quest for power?

He might come into power sooner if a Communist Jew was openly trying to overthrow the German Government.

More likely than not, they'd end up a German puppet state, or if the Nazis come into being in this timeline, they get Final Solution'd and cease to exist.

Eastern Europe would be Germany's playing ground.

Lebenraum is only possible if the Western Powers collapsed. If their power is intact Hitler can only set up puppet states.

Yugoslavia was well on its way to collapse. Tito actually bought it more time.

there would be no way that European powers would allow Germany to enlarge so soon after fucking it with Versailles for the very purpose of not letting it be too powerful

if anything, it would become Poland's playground due to its direct border and muh history (the Polish Commonwealth extended eastward, while what is now western Poland was German); so maybe Germany would be given the Polish Corridor for being a good boy and helping to produce armaments against the Soviets or something

The Allies were actually working with Germany and reducing its payment before Hitler came around. In the event of a war to destroy the Soviet Union the only nation will the capability to occupy Moscow was Germany. Especially since France and Britain would not want to lose manpower.

>tfw there will never be a Polish-German-French alliance to destroy filthy C*mmies
Feelsbadman

having any one country occupy the whole of Russia (even just its European part), or making it its sole puppet, is a little outlandish

I imagine a situation like post-WWII Germany where you have multiple occupying powers to be much more likely, and workable. Germany simply didn't have the manpower to solely carry out such an occupation or invasion - no more than France or Britain

the fact Germany was coming back into the West's good graces is a fair point. I think they'd be first in the running to occupy/annex Konigsberg. and come out of that conflict a rejuvenated power with a robust military.

What about the Turks, Japanese, Americans? Not to say that you're wrong, just curious what the non-European powers are up to while this goes down.

Japs had their chance to take a bite out of Russia in the Civil War and they decided against it. Turks might support Caucasian independence but it's unlikely they would commit forces. The Americans would find a way to make money out of the conflict.

Germany already had Konigsberg, If anything the Baltic States would be recognized as their sphere of influence.

In what way would Trotsky act no different from Stalin? Did he really have plans use terror and maintain Gulag like camps under a Trotsky regime?

>Trotsky gains power in 1924 over Stalin after the death of Lenin
"World Revolution" instead of "Socialism in one country".

SU attacks everyone.

Alternate reality where WW2 is Fascism & Capitalism vs communism and The Cold War is capitalism vs fascism.

Konigsberg was handed to Russia after ww2, at this time it was in german hands.

Intredasting

Instead of waiting for the right opportunity in the late 30s he stupidly tries to spread the revolution again and most likely fail as the entire central Europe unites against him.