The Cold War was a clash of culture, ideologies, and a standoff between the world 's two greatest nuclear powers. The argument of the American side was based around Capitalism and a hunger for ever growing business while the Soviet Union’s was structured around Communism and it’s powerful theocracy that stated it must be spread to every country on the planet. As a result, there has been much debate about whether the U.S. initiated the Cold War through their usage of the atomic bomb in World War II, or the Soviet Union did with their extreme cultural and military expansion. However, the phrasing of the original question makes this clear from a schoolyard fight perspective. It comes down to who threw the first punch? Without a doubt, it was the United States, using the most powerful weapon known to mankind in an attempt to put Japan down for good and flex their muscles as a new world power. The United States’ dropping of the nuclear bomb, a weapon of mass destruction, in an effort to quickly take Japan out of the war had many more side effects than originally anticipated. For one, it incited the Soviet Union to fast-track their research and production of nuclear weapons, which led to a tense situation between them and the United States. Each side was waiting for the other to initiate before putting to use the many nukes they had been manufacturing after the end of World War II. Although, the concept of MAD, or mutually assured destruction, prevented either side from taking
Democratic localism was also enforced to keep the government at bay, allowing people to make their own economic decisions. Capitalism was renewed due to growth. Americans were enjoying various freedoms in politics, religion and travel. Nixon stated in one of his speeches that the United States had “come closest to the idea of prosperity for all in a classless society (166).”
There have been various ideologies, events, and origins of the Cold War that have dominated American foreign policy from 1946 to 1989. The Cold War was a time of conflict between between the U.S. and the USSR; the two Superpowers saw each other as a threat. Thus they continued to fight to preserve their positions. Each side became involved in events such as the Korean War. They each stood behind the other nations fighting. Together the rise in communism, a rise of the Soviet influence dominated American foreign policy, and the creation of the Warsaw Pact.
Offner, Arnold, "Provincialism and Confrontation: Truman’s Responsibility" in Major Problems in American Foreign Relations, Volume II.
In 1947, the Cold War had started, named after how both of the disputing sides did not fight but only threatened each other with new technologies. The U.S and Soviet Union disagreements on political systems and also questioned war reparation, show how they cause the Cold War with their mistrust and technological issues.
After World War two the two allies soon split. The United States and the Soviet Union were immediately against each other. This was the beginning of the Cold War. The three main causes of the Cold War were spheres of influence, ideology, and military factors. With my information, I believe that the Soviet Union was the most responsible for the Cold War.
1. How NSC-68 influenced America’s response to Communist North Korea’s invasion of South Korea in June 1950 and to Communist expansion in Southeast Asia in the 1960s. The NSC-68 called for military assistance programs that would meet the requirements of our allies. Since South Korea was an ally, we assisted them in repelling the invasion of another communist nation. This help for South Korea meant that a communist nation would be weakened and therefore possibly cripple a potential ally for the Soviet Union. Also, South Korea would then respond to a call for aid if the Soviet Union ever attacked
After World War II, the Eastern and Western Allies started to grow apart. The Eastern Bloc was led by the Soviet Union and promoted communism, while the Western Bloc was led by the United States and promoted capitalism, through democracy. Both wanted their country’s ideals to spread throughout the world, and at the same time, prevent the opposing superpower from taking over. In an attempt to stop the spread of communism, the United States created NATO and the Truman Doctrine, while the Soviet Union tried to stop democracy by creating the Warsaw Pact. At this point, the world was divided, and most third world countries became pawns in the fight of communism versus capitalism.
During World War II the United States and the Soviet Union fought together as Allies against the Axis Powers, however the relationship between the two was tense. The Axis Powers were an alliance between Germany, Italy and Japan. The United States government was wary of the Soviets because they were communists and Americans were concerned about the Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin. The political systems of the two countries prevented them from reaching a mutual agreements such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, which then resulted in war. This nuclear war had a huge affect on the society, along with communism, education and even the Space Race. Hysteria was caused in result of the threat communism, which was later called the Red Scare. The Cold War impacted
The Cold War was a competition. The US and the Soviet Union raced to become the world’s number one superpower, building up their militaries, improving their arsenals, and developing more advanced weapons. However, weapons in the war were not limited to only nuclear warheads. The weapons used in the Cold War were nuclear warheads, and hope and terror caused by propaganda.
“There is some risk involved in action, there always is. But there is far more risk in failure to act.” -Harry S. Truman. In this quote by Truman, it is shown that the decision of the Cold War was going to result in risk by trying to turn people away from communism but the effect from people turning communist would be worse. Prior to the Cold War, World War II occurred. The United States was now a world superpower and the Soviet Union aspired to be like them. The Cold war involved communism and the U.S. trying to turn people away from it. The Cold War was a fight between communism and capitalist economic philosophies that impacted the actions of the United State and the Soviet Union.
The Cold war began due to political and military tension due to World War II. The Soviet Union and America were two world superpowers that fought for a change in government and world supremacy. America feared a communist expansion from the Soviet Union and created many policies, laws, legislations, and pacts to protect democracy on the home front as well as internationally. The Cold War stemmed from the Soviet Union’s failure to maintain their integrity to the group of nations in the Yalta and Potsdam Conference. Soviet leader, Stalin invaded Eastern Europe and started the communist expansion in regions that were promised to be untouched. The consequences of his actions resulted in the Cold War. American reactions to the Cold War were justified
In 1961 President John F Kennedy put together a doctrine, which altered from President Eisenhower’s one. It was to “Respond flexibly to communist expansion, especially guerrilla warfare.” (Roskin & Berry, 2010, p. 58) It was a time when the Cold War was at its height and nuclear weapons a mass threat and source of power. This doctrine was aimed at using alternative means before opening into combat. This, in light of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, it succeeded in doing.
Throughout the Cold War, Korean War, and Vietnam War the main problem was communism. Although the United States and the Soviet Union were allies in World War Two, during the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union were known as enemies. The Soviet leaders bragged to other nations that communism would “scrape apart” free-enterprise systems around the world. This attitude angered the capitalists which led into the fifty year Cold War. The United States tried creating many tactics and strategies to contain the “bleeding” of communism, but during the cold war, communism spread faster then it could be restrained. The United States used the Marshall Plan , the Trueman Doctrine, and the Berlin Airlift to help lead people to a
The Cold War was a response to the perceived threat by the United States that Communism would interfere with national security and economic stakes in the world. It was a perceived threat by communist countries that the United States would take to the world. During the Cold War, the United States, Russia, and other countries made efforts to avoid another world war, while warring in proxy in other lands. The devastation caused by the hydrogen bombs exploded in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the next technological advancements became only deterrents to the public. Governments had their own agenda which would result in worsening the strain between nations. The United States hid behind a curtain of nationalism resulting in increased
The end of the cold war signified a new era of history that has changed the entire world. The face of Europe and Asia has changed dramatically. Vast changes have been felt socially, politically, and especially economically. Also the effect the cold war had on foreign policy was paramount. The effect of these changes is not only felt across the ocean but can be felt here in America. The goal of this paper is to define what the cold war specifically was, and reflect upon the various choices throughout the world as a result of the end of the cold war.