After the end of World War II in 1945 many U.S. citizens, as well as the citizens of the world, hoped for a time of peace. This dream, however, was not the reality of what was to come next. While many hoped to avoid another major war, the fear that had been instilled within their hearts would result a much different type of conflict. Granted, the Cold War never escalated to physical battle, but nevertheless remains one of the most important wars in history. Lasting over a span of forty-five years the three major components of the Cold War include the rise of nuclear weapons, the red scare, and the space race. By now we all know how the U.S. ended World War II. To this day, many disagree with their methods, but there is no denying that they were effective. On August 6, 1945 the United States “dropped the world’s first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima” (History). This bomb killed tens of thousands of people, only to be followed by another bomb three days later in Nagasaki. Less than a week after these attacks, Japan surrender to the U.S. opening the world’s eyes to the effectiveness of nuclear weapons. Naturally, the crushing defeat inspired the Soviet Union, as well as other countries, to build their own form of the American atomic bomb. Seeing as the Soviet Union was a communist county, this determination to join the nuclear arms race scared most American citizens. On August 29. 1949 the Soviet Union successfully detonated their first atomic
The Cold War was the name given to the political economic, military and ideological contention that occurred between the United States and its allies and the Soviet Union and their allies after World War II. The two forces never directly engaged in military activity in light of the fact that both had atomic weapons that if utilized, might have had crushing outcomes for both sides. Instead, proxy wars were battled. A proxy war results when contradicting forces utilize outsiders as substitutes for battling each one other and is ordinarily launched by a power that does not itself partake. The Korean and Vietnam wars are two examples of proxy wars on the grounds that the U.S. and the Soviet Union did not directly engage one another however, Soviet endeavors to spread and bring together both Korea and Vietnam under communist rule provoked mediation either by the United States and/or by their allies. These two occasions were simply a few of the impacts of the Cold War in Asia. This paper will examine each war individually and in more detail and endeavor to persuade that the Korean and Vietnam Wars were the immediate aftereffects of Soviet endeavors to expand communist influence in Asia and the United States and their allies' approach of forestalling and holding such endeavors.
As tensions continued to augment profoundly throughout the latter half of the Cold War period, they brought forth a movement from a previous bipolar conflicting course, to one of a more multipolar nature. These tensions were now not only restricted to the Soviet Union and United states, but amongst multiple other nations of the globe. It became a general consensus that a notion of ‘peace’ was sought globally, hence, the emergence of détente. The nature of this idea in the short term conveyed itself to be an act of change for the conflicting nations, however, in the long term it proved to be a blatant continuity, ultimately acting as a ‘mechanism for domestic fortification’ which prompted a more divisive tone. It became apparent that by the prime 1970’s Cold War countries were now seeking a state of relaxation in political and international tension, détente, through measures of diplomacy and negotiation. Actions, influences and treaties such as the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, the establishment of SALT 1, the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty of 1972 and the Shanghai Communique of 1972 evidently help reinforce that the concept of détente brought a period focused on lessening the tensions of international relations and ultimately achieve political relation for the future of the Cold War, although the success and impact of this era is abhorred by many historians who have concluded that détente didn’t activate any positive changes to the cold war, and was conclusively a failure.
When President Truman authorized the use of two nuclear weapons in 1945 against the Japanese in the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end World War II, the nature of international security was changed irreversibly. At that time, the United States had what was said to have a monopoly of atomic bombs. Soon thereafter, the Soviet Union began working on atomic weaponry. In 1949, it had already detonated it first atomic bomb and tensions began to heat up between the two countries. With the information that the Soviets had tested their first bomb, the United States began work on more powerful weapons1, and a fight for nuclear superiority had begun.
The Cold War, which was considered the “years of maximum danger,” lasted from 1949-1962. This period brought an increasing sense of danger to America because the Soviet Union came into possession of an atomic bomb in 1949; an idea many Americans thought to be impossible unless the Soviet Union had a spy in the United States, which they did. Because the Soviet Union had an atomic bomb, a nuclear war became a reality. In Kenneth Rose’s “One Nation Underground” he told of rising issues associated with the Cold War and the threat of nuclear bombings. The Cold War, in conjunction with the inventions of (total destructive) bombs, generated new dangers, fears, and morality issues among Americans, which led to further increased fears.
In 1945 after WWII the United States and the Soviet Union became divided as far as how they felt Europe should be divided. This began the period of conflict called the Cold War. The Cold War was “a state of political hostility between countries characterized by threats, propaganda, and other measures short of open warfare”(dictionary.com).The USSR believed in communism, where the US believed in democracy. The US was between two potentially hostile nations, the US designed a Buffer Zone to prevent any overt acts of aggression.At the end of WWI,I almost all of the eastern European countries were occupied by Russia these countries were known as Satellite States. The distrust between the two nations began at the Yalta Conference which included the three big powers: Churchill (Great Britain),Stalin (Soviet Union), and Roosevelt (United States of America). Stalin wanted more control as far how Europe progressed after WWII, where Roosevelt believed Europe should hold free election and determine their political system and rivalry between the two superpowers and began the Cold War. Some might blame the Americans for the causing for the Cold War because of the American’s wanted to occupy the countries, but the Soviet Union bares the responsibility for the Cold War because of their actions in Eastern Europe, by the military expansionism of Stalin and his successors, and the principles presented in the Iron Curtain Speech .
At the end of World War II America dropped the Atomic Bomb in order to intimidate the Soviet Union. “Mr. Byrnes’s … view [was] that our possessing and
Parents go through a range of emotions when they find out their child has a diagnosis. Parents take on the responsibility for their child 's condition especially mothers. Parents turned to the medical profession for guidance and often put their child in institutions during the era of the Cold War. Some children diagnoses are from no error of the parents but from a medical incident. Merrill is an example of brain damage from the impact of high fever. A running theme in this book isha families take the blame for their children 's issues.
Long before the atomic detonations above Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Stalin was aware of the American nuclear program. Following the detonation, it was not the technological significance of the bombs that shocked Stalin, who already had spies in the Manhattan Project, rather, it was the alacrity with which the Americans used the weaponry that proved surprising. In what Stalin later described as a “rare misjudgement”, the Soviet dictator admitted to underestimating the American ambition for victory. Fundamental idealistic differences between the Soviet Union and the United States, no longer overshadowed by the threat of Germany, immediately began to brew conflict following the surrender of imperial Japan. As America celebrated victory, the Soviet Union accelerated its ongoing nuclear program and prepared for another war.
Despite its name, the Cold War did not actually involve military fighting between the United States and the Soviet Union. However, the Cold War is still an excellent example as to why war can be a result of bargaining failures and explains reasons as to why war occurs. A single person’s rationality can tip the scale between war and peace. The Cold War was essentially a deadlock between the two super powers of that time, the United States and the Soviet Union. Both states expressed desire to maintain and widen their respective spheres of influence around the world. Both states also wanted to prove that their political system is superior; whereas the United States was pro-democracy, the Soviet Union was pro-communism. Although the Cold War was a result of many factor, war can definitely occur due to information problems between two states. Nonetheless, I do believe there is always a range of agreements that is possible between states, as is evidenced by the resolution of the Cuban missile crisis.
In August of 1945, The United States successfully used the Atomic bomb for the first time in the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, while over 100,000 people died the greater importance of this moment would be played out in history for decades to come. (Lecture) The importance that the creation of the Atomic bomb gave the world was enough to end mankind if the wrong people were capable of finding out how to use it. It would take only a short amount of time for other countries to gain access of this weapon, and it would begin a new era of fear in the United States.
While the Cold War never brought upon much direct conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union, it spanned for over 40 years. However, it was also the closest turning point to nuclear war as well as the first documented instance of mutual assured destruction. This doctrine, also known as MAD, is a policy of military strategy and national security policy in which the complete utilization of weapons of mass destruction by enemies would completely destroy them both. Such is the case for the two main superpowers during the Cold War. The “13 Days” of the Cuban Missile Crisis marked the most dangerous encounter in the Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union. This was because the crisis of nuclear power brought about a direct clash between the Soviet Union and America, nuclear weapons dominated a political dispute, and the entire world was in grave jeopardy.
Once the Cold War was starting to unfold in the 1950’s and 1960’s, the world endured more change than in any other period of time throughout history. A global independence movement was reshaping the world into what we know it as today. Several nations from the regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Middle East were finally gaining the independence they have long demanded since the 1800’s. All of these nations were former areas that the western powers of Europe colonized for their own benefits. These benefits included the use of slave labor and the slave trade, use of the country’s natural resources, or just to fulfill the need to create a global empire. After hundreds of years of this unjust treatment, dating all the way
The battle in ideologies between communism and capitalism lead to one of the greatest conflicts of the twentieth century. The concept that freedom and democracy would not survive under communist rule triggered a battle that could endure for decades. American media significantly impacted the attitudes of Americans, creating a hatred of communism to spread throughout the nation. The political relations in Europe, during and directly after World War II, played a large part in laying the foundation for the Cold War. Wartime seminars, like Yalta and Tehran, only harshened the relationship involving the communists and the capitalists. By the end of World War II, American policy towards the Soviets had transformed drastically, along with the change of president in 1945, which further caused relations with Russia to worsen. Additional contributions to the Cold War included the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan. The section of Europe, between the west and east, drew on physical borders outlining that the war of misinformation had formally commenced.
On August 6th, 1945 the United States dropped the first atom bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later on August 9th, 1945 a second bomb fell on Nagasaki, Japan also dropped by the United States. The outcome of the U.S. choosing to drop the atomic bomb created complications and initiated events that may have been avoided. Though whether or not the dropping of the bomb was understandable and necessary for the war remains a controversial topic, its consequences are still evident. The negative effects of dropping the atomic bomb are seen in the development of the Cold War, health issues that emerged, and the technological advances made.
Since the end of the Cold War, the total amount of wars has declined sharply compared to those that occurred during the cold war period. According to Baylis et al. the 1990’s were the least violent decade since the end of World War II. Along with the striking decline of wars, lie a new form of state cooperation, one which theorists call the Democratic Peace Theory. This theory holds that while democracies do go to war that they do not fight each other. In essence, in a region where all democratic countries exist, war will become nonexistent. However, along with the Democratic peace theory are other theories within the theory of Realism that pose great reasons for the causes of war. On the same note, we see new conflicts arising in the form of terrorism taking up the new image of wars. So despite the overall commendable decline of wars, wars continue to persevere in certain regions of the world where it is exhibiting new features. As a result, I agree with Joll’s argument that most wars have many intertwining causes especially in this day and era where most of the conflicts and all wars current are as a result of an ethnic clash often linking to religion. (Baylis et al. 2011).