The Sources of Soviet Conduct by George F. Kennan Essay

1947: Truman Doctrine: The Truman Doctrine was one of the policies under President Truman’s “Containment Policy.” In the Doctrine, he requested $400 million to bolster forces in eastern Europe to defend against Communism. Congress agrees and passes the doctrine. Dean Acheson, who was the Secretary of State at the time, argued that the fall of a Communist country will have a “domino” effect on the neighboring countries, and they need to be properly prepared for such a situation. As result of this policy, the US became the “global

The Truman Doctrine affected the Cold War by stopping Communists from destroying Europe any further. History.state.gov states, “President Harry S. Truman established that the United States would provide political, military and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from external or internal authoritarian forces.” In his speech, he asked Congress to give support to the Greek government and go against the Communists. If the U.S. government failed to help the Greek government, the Communists would continue to damage Europe. The Truman Doctrine affected the Cold War, and another policy that affected the Cold

The Kennedy Doctrine, which was to “Respond flexibly to communist expansion, especially guerrilla warfare” (Roskin & Berry, 2010, p. 58), was executed in this history-making event to the letter. Kennedy could have, and had the power to cease the unfolding events with an all out air strike on the Soviet Union. Some say it is due to bureaucratic politics and the accessibility of information that was provided to the National Security Council by the CIA and air force that this did not occur. In responding flexibly to what The Soviet Union and Cuba were planning, America assessed the volatile situation, forethought possible outcomes and negated all their options albeit under a tight time constraint. America’s forces were mobilized and ready to strike, had word been given nuclear war was on the cards. Kennedy wanted to give The Soviet Union an out and put a halt to a possible war, rethink the situation and allow an alternative to occur. Due to this diplomacy, The Soviet Union entered into negotiations “the Kremlin offered a deal: no Soviet missiles in Cuba if Washington promised not to invade” (Roskin & Berry, 2010, p. 87). By using the flexible response tactic, Kennedy was

It is generally believed that the containment policy on the Soviet Union by the US after World War II is a typical product of Realism. However, the containment policy is by no means a simple balance of power, it is actually part of the grand strategy of the US Liberalism. The famous 8000-word telegram by George Kennan related the threats of Europe with the nature the Soviet regime. He believes that only after the zeal of the Soviet Bolshevik revolutionary exhausted could Western military have a relax because then the collapse of the Soviet system would be spontaneous. Kennan noted that the priority of the US is to rebuild Germany and Japan, and thus to transform the social objectives and national preference of Western countries. History showed

The Kennan article puts forward a variety of interesting arguments and insights regarding the USSR, and the authors opinion of the state of Russia at the time. One such area the author, George F. Kennan, a respected diplomat at the time, focuses on is the mentality of Russia and Communism.

The Truman Doctrine was the first, formal statement by a US president that America would intervene in the affairs of the world in a formal and consistent manner. It was the death knell of American isolationism and was an open acknowledgement of America's position as a world power willing to take aggressive action in international affairs. Truman unambiguously characterized the Soviet Union as evil, casting America's commitment to aid the Greek government against communist insurgents in a moral light (Coffey 1984: 233).

The orthodox view of the Cold War elucidates its inevitability due to the great ideological differences that existed between the Soviet Union and United States. On the other hand, the revisionists argued that it happened due to the actions that Soviets took and the consequential responses made by the United States as a result of their inflexible, single-sided interpretations of Soviet action. Yet, even with the backdrop of the early Bolshevik conflict in 1918 as well

In Europe, there were many problems erupting during the cold war. Progress was need but very little changes were being made during 1946. The economy was getting worst and worst, but both Britain and France had effective campaigns to increase production for export that provided increased earnings of the dollar required to finance essential needs. The campaign wasn’t as effective as we might of thought because sooner or later the United States had to get involved. The Truman Doctrine came about during the cold war, when the British government informed the U.S that they can no longer furnish the economic and military assistance it had been providing to Greece and Turkey. The Truman administration believed that both nations were threatened by communism, and this would be a great opportunity to take on the Soviet Union.

George Kennan was best identified as "the father of containment" and as a crucial participant in the rise of the Cold War. “Kennan brought to foreign policy an antiquated conception of how to formulate policy, and that was why his ideas did not meet with much implementation in US policy to the Soviet Union” (Fienberg). Meaning that though Kennan’s ideas were new, different and some were effective, they were simply short- lived because they were so inventive and people were not used to that.

in Hanhimäki & Westad, 2003, p. 106). He detailed the threat of communism, and Congress quickly agreed to allocate the requested $400 million to prevent the fall of Greece and Turkey to the communists (Keylor, 2011, p. 263). Truman also stated, “it must be the policy of the United States to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures” (qtd. in Keylor, 2011, p. 263). The Truman Doctrine effectively reoriented U.S. foreign policy, away from its usual stance of withdrawal from regional conflicts not directly involving the United States, to one of possible intervention in far away conflicts. The Truman Doctrine became the official policy of the United States, and it had far-reaching repercussions. It drove the wedge between the U.S. and the Soviet Union much deeper, thus polarizing the world. Other nations and regions essentially had to choose between supporting the United States or the Soviet Union. The Truman Administration made further attempts to contain the Soviet threat with the Marshall Plan. Much of Western Europe was economically crippled by WWII and showed little hope of recovery. The widespread poverty, soaring unemployment, and limited potential

First of all, Truman doctrine and its objectives must be presented. The Truman doctrine was established in 1947, by the thirty-third president of the United States- Harry S. Truman. In the book “ The Truman Presidency’’ the Truman doctrine was described as ‘’one of the most momentous events in international political relations of this century”. The Truman Doctrine was necessary, as the communist push and constraint on Greece and Turkey menaced both of them with debacle. The main issue was, that if Turkey fell, Greece would collapse with her and vice versa. And if the USSR would break through these political barriers, the rest of Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and even India would be in peril. In other words- there would be an obvious dominance of Communism, which could not be allowed, as it would disrupt the growing idyll of capitalism and democracy. The only way that

intervention. Kennan believes that because the Russian policy allowed for patience, therefore the U.S.A. too should be patient. Kennan believes the threat of the Soviets could be confined by skilfully employing counter-force. Soviet power relied heavily on unification and compliance by Russian society; with the rapid industrialisation leading to forced labour, the illusion of Soviet power that the Kremlin created domestically was slowly diminishing. Kennan claims that because of the distinct rivalry between the two countries, U.S.A. was warranted in challenging Russia whenever they imposed a threat. The best way to approach the situation was to begin influencing individuals and states that communism is unsustainable; much as the Soviets claim capitalism is. By slowly increasing the pressure placed on the Soviets, Kennan believes the U.S.A. could steadily disintegrate the Soviet Union.

After World War II, the American government actively engaged with the communist government of The Soviet Union. Politicians and the public alike could not form a practical foreign policy because they did not fully understand the complexities of Soviet ideas and power. America desperately needed help. George Kennan, on the other hand, was a scholar of Russian history and political thought, a diplomat in Moscow, and a leader in the State Department. His expertise offered insight into the well-known foreign policy of containment. Kennan, through his policy of containment, sought to uphold American national interests amidst the growing threat of the USSR and an ignorant American public. In "The Sources of Soviet Conduct", George Kennan aimed to

George Kennan wrote The Sources of Soviet Conduct in 1947 as his response to what should be done about the Soviet Union during the Cold War. He writes that the original ideology of the Soviets was that capitalism would eventually fall and it was their duty to aid in the ruin and to take power. He states that the soviets distaste for capitalism and socialism was so deeply rooted that they could not be reasoned with, and that any actions that the Soviets take that would seem to contradict their opposition would most likely to be a tactical maneuver.

George Kennan believed that the initial cause of the Cold War was Russia’s fear of powerful opponents that can invade Russia. As a result, Russia was not willing to compromise and prefer the complete neutralization of a threat. While there are some ideological aspects, much of this was historical since Russia had suffered severe losses in the 2nd World War and does not want a repeat of the Nazi invasion of the USSR. George believed that a “hot war” is not inevitable since he thought that the solution to this conflict was to “approach calmly and with a good heart.” (Spielvogel 869). On the other hand, Nikolai believed that the main goal of the Americans is world domination. In his eyes, the US is the aggressor since it placed