Helpppp!!! I suck at global, so i seriously need your help ASAP?

Basically they are like a shield for the Soviet Union in case of invasion. If the traditional Soviet enemies (the US, France, Germany - Western Europe generally) were to invade the Soviet Union, they would start from Germany and have to make it through countries like Poland, Czechoslovakia (now two countries, the Czech Republic and Slovakia), Yugoslavia and so on. Obviously this would take time, and this time-lag would give Moscow (the Soviet version of Washington) a warning. The Soviets wanted to make sure the Satellites stayed loyal so that they would not join in a sneak attack. Sometimes this loyalty was kind of forced - there is a Polish joke, "The Soviets are our brothers but the Americans are our friends. You can choose your friends." The Soviets, btw, used to keep submarines off the East Coast, just beyond the 12 mile international border at sea. Hope this helps