Which conference in 1945 confirmed the division of Germany?

The Potsdam Conference in 1945 confirmed the division of Germany into four Allied occupation zones.

Held from 17 July to 2 August 1945, the conference brought together Harry Truman of the United States, Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union, and Winston Churchill, later replaced by Clement Attlee. Germany had surrendered unconditionally on 8 May, so the leaders discussed how it would be governed and rebuilt.

The four zones were administered by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union. Berlin, although located inside the Soviet zone, was also divided into four sectors and governed jointly by the occupying powers. The conference confirmed arrangements developed in earlier wartime agreements, including the occupation framework first outlined before the German surrender.

Potsdam did not immediately create two separate German countries. The later emergence of West Germany and East Germany resulted from growing political, economic, and ideological conflict between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union. The conference also addressed demilitarization, denazification, reparations, and Germany’s eastern frontier.