The Cold War was a period of continuous tension between the United States and the Soviet Union lasting from 1945 to 1989. As the two nations emerged from World War II as world superpowers, the race for supremacy commenced. While American democracies consisted hostility towards the idea of a communist state, the Soviet Union aimed to dominate the Eastern hemisphere with their communist ideals. Although the two superpowers never engaged in full scale combat, their rivalries produced a long period of mutual distrust and antipathy. American presidents Harry Truman, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan all played large, impactful roles during the Cold War, however, they each attempted to lead their country to peace in respective ways.
Harry Truman,
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Albeit Truman had used the atomic bomb to “chiefly end the war” (Gaddis, 26), Soviet leader Joseph Stalin saw the bomb as a means by which “the United States would seek to extract postwar concessions from the Soviet Union” (Gaddis, 26). It was on this day in history in which tensions visibly emerged between the United States and the U.S.S.R. due to president Harry Truman’s controversial decision to use the atomic bomb. In his book The Cold War, John Gaddis states “The Cold War’s roots in the world war, therefore, help to explain why this new conflict emerged so quickly after the old one had come to an end” (26). After the war ended in 1945, the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as the greatest two powers in the world. As Soviet power grew in the western hemisphere, their government became determined to establish a sphere of influence and expand their power under the rule of Joseph Stalin (Foner, 711). In response, president Harry Truman believed America must become involved in the containment of the Soviet Union and justified this newfound American foreign policy in his distinguished speech known as the “Truman
After the end of World War II on September 2, 1945, a new era called the Cold War began. The Cold War was a non-violent state of political and military tension between the democratic and capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union: two of the biggest powers of the world at the time. However, they were drastically different in both economy and politics, allowing rivalry to build up. They both wanted to become the most powerful nation of the world, and both feared that the other nation would rise up to become the most powerful nation of the world.
“I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures.” This declaration, made by former President Harry S. Truman on March 12, 1947, is part of the Truman Doctrine, and was the basis for U.S. involvement in Western Europe throughout the Cold War. Although the North Atlantic Treaty, and the resulting North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), was established during the Cold War “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down,” NATO has persisted since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990. This essay will seek to examine the U.S. decision to create and participate in NATO. It will begin by providing a history of NATO and the U.S. decision to participate in NATO before considering how this decision is both an instance of continuity and change in U.S. foreign policy since former President George Washington’s Farewell Address. The essay will conclude by considering the legacy of this decision and its impact on U.S. foreign policy. While this essay will consider the period of time leading up to the formation of NATO and will briefly touch on the present day, greatest consideration will be paid to the time period immediately preceding and following the formation of NATO in 1949.
Consisting of 44 years of violence and civil unrest from 1947 to 1991, the Cold War was a huge turning-point in history. The Cold War however was a war of avoidance, not combat. Defence systems were heavily funded as deterrence to actual war, the belief being a risk of mutual annihilation would be too great to be the side to make the first move. However, the Cold War caused a large variety of conflict and civil unrest around the world, such as the Korean War, Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The War split the world into supporting either the United States, or the USSR (Soviet Union). Both superpowers were associated with two very different political systems; Capitalism and Communism. The Soviets were very concerned about the spread
The United States from the Cold War and into the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) continues to face challenges in translating military might into political desires due to its obsession with raising an army, electing politicians and assembling a diplomatic corp that continue to gravitate towards State-to-State engagements that if not rectified could lead to substantial delays in fighting terrorism and non-terrorist adversaries or worse total failure of the United States Military’s ability to properly carry out it’s politicians objectives due to being blindsided.
The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union took place after the World War II until the early 1990s. Both the United States and the Soviet Union were at the Cold War which employed nuclear arms race, space programs development race, weapons developments, counter-intelligence, military alliances, and propaganda. This Cold War made the world fear for the possible World War III. Ally nations for both sides were divided into either the democratic or the communism which were either on the United States side or the Soviet Union’s side. This Cold War was a political and strategic method to gain strategic territories for the military purpose and also for the economic gains.
The Cold War was a state of tension between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. It was characterized by an arms race particularly in nuclear weaponry. The Soviet Union and the United States were also embroiled in a space race. The American people were afraid of nuclear war and the global spread of communism after World War II. The Eisenhower administration did not address these fears effectively, although he attempted to relieve these concerns.
The Cold War was a “war” between the United States and the Soviet Union. Nothing was ever fired, but tensions were very high in both countries. It started in 1947 and lasted all the way until 1991 when Gorbachev officially ended the Soviet Union. The Berlin Wall also fell in 1989. These things can all be attributed to President Ronald Reagan. At the Geneva Summit in 1985, he talked to Gorbachev and was able to come to a peaceful conclusion to the Cold War in only four meetings. He was able to diminish the Soviet Union and “win” the Cold War all because of his strategy that had three main parts.
After more than forty years, the Cold War era ended in 1991 largely due to Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Despite being allies during WWII, the United States and the Soviet Union had an acrimonious relationship from 1947 to 1991. This period of time was known for the military build-up of each country, ultimately resulting in a nuclear missile stand-off. President Reagan’s goal of “peace through strength” was the basis for negotiations with the Soviet Union that ended the threat of nuclear war by eliminating the use of intermediate-range nuclear missiles.
The Cold War was a war of ideas, about the government and the economy, between powers from the United States and the Soviet Union. The Cold War was a period between 1947/1991 (History). President Ronald Reagan met with the Soviet Union General Secretary Mikhail and requested a meeting to occur in Russia with the heads of the government. President Reagan had ditched the original plan, made by Presidents Ford, Carter, and Nixon that would eliminate political conflict. Reagan created a giant army and pointed many weapons at the Soviet Union. Their army had no comparison to the United States Army, and Mikhail’s policy was to increase the freedom for his Soviet citizens, which helped get rid of the communism throughout Russia. Ronald Reagan stood
I believe that the United States’ involvement in the Cold War had a significant influence on the debate as well as the Supreme Court decision of the Brown v. Board of Education case.
President Harry Truman’s use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan during the Second World War is the most controversial decision in history. While it was an undoubtedly difficult decision, it was indeed necessary in order to end this six year war that had ravaged the world. While many critics argue that the bomb was used primarily as an act of vengeance toward Japan, simplifying such a crucial moment in human history downplays the very real threat Japan posed to the United States. While avoiding strained relations with the other Allied countries, Truman had to assess the possible danger of the Soviet Union in a post-war world. Furthermore, the possibility of an arms race, the moral implications of using this weapon, and
The Cold War was the name given to the time period from 1945 to 1991. After World War II, tensions began between the United States and the Soviet Union. Fighting between the United States and Soviet Union did not happen directly against each other. Instead they fought with arms races, space races, and spying. Both superpowers set aside their differences to defeat Adolf Hitler, even before the war the United States distrusted the Soviet Union. The United States disliked the way the Soviet Union ran government. They believed that the Soviet Union wanted to overthrow the non-communist governments.
Role of the United States during the Cold War The role of the United States during the Cold War, specifically in Korea was containment. Not so much containment as far as containment of forces but the containment from the spread of communism. The United States was leading the fight in the spread of communism and Russian influence across the globe. At home the country was experiencing fundamental changes socially, politically, and in the area of civil rights.
The Cold War, which started sometime in the 1940’s, was a large quarrel between the United States and the Soviet Union. This dispute involved a lot of propaganda and threats of nuclear warfare. Despite all of the trouble though, after over forty years of fighting, the two leaders of these countries (Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev) would finally work out a solution. However, although they did reach an agreement, there were many differences between these two men.
After World War II, the United States had effectively become the most powerful and influential country in the world both militarily and politically. During America’s rise to power, however, hostilities mounted between America and the Soviet Union, resulting in a fierce rivalry. The Cold War, which never involved direct military confrontations between the two nations, involved of the struggle to contain the spread of communism, extreme anti-communist attitudes in America, and a reemergence of the civil rights issue.