<P> Russia had previously been a member of the League of the Three Emperors, an alliance in 1873 with Austria - Hungary and Germany . The alliance was part of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck ′ s plan to isolate France diplomatically; he feared that France's revanchist aspirations might make it to regain its losses in 1871 after the Franco - Prussian War . The alliance also served to fight against progressive sentiments, which the conservative rulers found unsettling, such as the First International . </P> <P> However, the League faced great difficulty with the growing tensions between Russia and Austria - Hungary, mainly over the Balkans, where the rise of nationalism and the continued decline of the Ottoman Empire made many former Ottoman provinces struggle for independence . </P> <P> The situation in the Balkans, especially in the wake of the Serbo - Bulgarian War and the 1878 Treaty of Berlin, which made Russia feel cheated of its gains made in the Russo - Turkish War, prevented the League from being renewed in 1887 . In an attempt to stop Russia from allying with France, Bismarck signed the secret Reinsurance Treaty with Russia in 1887 . The treaty assured that both parties would remain neutral if war broke out . The alliance between Russia and France and Bismarck's exclusion of Russia from the German financial market in 1887 prevented the treaty from being renewed in 1890 . That ended the alliance between Germany and Russia . </P> <P> After the Reinsurance Treaty was not renewed in 1890, Russian leaders grew alarmed at the country's diplomatic isolation and joined the Franco - Russian Alliance in 1894 . </P>

When were the triple entente and triple alliance formed