COLD WAR CONFLICTS U.S vs. U.S.S.R.. ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR After being Allies during WWII, the...
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Transcript of COLD WAR CONFLICTS U.S vs. U.S.S.R.. ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR After being Allies during WWII, the...
COLD WAR CONFLICTS
U.S vs.
U.S.S.R.
ORIGINS OF THE COLD WARAfter being Allies during WWII, the U.S. and U.S.S.R. soon viewed each other with increasing suspicionTheir political differences created a climate of icy tension that plunged the two countries into an era of bitter rivalry known as the Cold War
The Cold War would dominate global affairs from 1945 until the breakup of the USSR in
1991
POLITICAL DIFFERENCESAt the heart of the tension was a fundamental difference in political systems America is a democracy that has a capitalist economic system, free elections and competing political partiesIn the U.S.S.R., the sole political party – the Communists – established a totalitarian regime with little or no rights for the citizens Soviets viewed Marx, Engels
and Lenin as founders of Communism
Background - Why a Cold War?Differing aims in Europe
WWII had affected the U.S. and USSR differently•The U.S. emerged as the world’s richest and most powerful country: only 400,000 Americans died during the war, and industry and cities remained intact
Background - Why a Cold War?•The USSR was devastated after the
war: 20 million deaths (1 in 4 Soviets dead or injured), many cities and factories demolished, farmlands destroyed
These differences meant that the U.S. and the USSR envisioned postwar Europe very differently
Superpower Aims in Europe
Encourage democracy to prevent communism from spreading
Encourage communism and worldwide workers’ revolution
Gain access to raw materials and markets to fuel industry
Rebuild economy using E. Europe’s industrial equipment and raw materials
Rebuild European governments to promote stability and create new markets for U.S. goods
Control E. Europe to protect Soviet borders and balance U.S. influence in the west
Reunite Germany to stabilize it and increase the security of Europe
Keep Germany divided so that it couldn’t wage war again
United States Soviet Union
Background - Why a Cold War?These differing aims brought the two Superpowers into conflict
the U.S. was afraid of a global communist conspiracy led by the USSR, and the USSR
feared that the U.S.
was calling for a worldwide capitalist expansion
Background - Why a Cold War?During the war, Soviet troops had remained behind in each of the Eastern European countries “liberated” from the Nazis
Background - Why a Cold War?After the war, Stalin used these troops to help install communist governments, creating buffer states.
Stalin believed that capitalism and communism could not coexist and that war was certain. By creating buffer states, he was hoping to protect the USSR from invasion by the west.
Winston Churchill called the result an “Iron Curtain” that had descended on Europe and was separating East from West.
The Iron Curtain was a metaphor: on one side were the free nations of Western Europe, on the other side were the communist nations controlled by the USSR.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
CHURCHILL: “IRON CURTAIN” ACROSS EUROPE
Europe was now divided into two political regions; a mostly democratic Western Europe and a communist Eastern Europe
Churchill, right, in Fulton, Missouri delivering his “iron curtain” speech,
1946
Iron Curtain cartoon,
1946
The U.S. ResponseThree policies show how the U.S. was determined to challenge Soviet domination and protect its interests in Europe
The U.S. ResponseContainment: the U.S. said it wouldn’t interfere
where communism already existed, but it would prevent any expansion by creating alliances and helping countries resist Soviet advances
The U.S. ResponseThe Truman Doctrine: the U.S. would help countries resisting communism by giving them monetary aid
The U.S. ResponseThree policies (con’t)
The Marshall Plan: the U.S. authorized a total of $13 billion in aid to any European country that requested it
According to the cartoon, what is the relationship between the U.S. and Europe?
SOVIETS DOMINATE EASTERN EUROPEThe Soviet Union suffered an estimated 20 million WWII deaths, half of whom were civilianAs a result they felt justified in their claim to Eastern EuropeFurthermore, they felt they needed Eastern Europe as a buffer against future German aggression
STALIN INSTALLS PUPPET GOVERNMENTS Stalin installed
“satellite” communist governments in the Eastern European countries of Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Yugoslavia and East GermanyThis after promising “free elections” for Eastern Europe at the Yalta Conference
In a 1946 speech, Stalin said communism and capitalism were incompatible – and another
war was inevitable
The “Iron Curtain”The “Iron Curtain”
From Stettin in the Balkans, to Trieste in From Stettin in the Balkans, to Trieste in the Adriatic, an the Adriatic, an iron curtainiron curtain has descended has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lies across the Continent. Behind that line lies the ancient capitals of Central and Eastern the ancient capitals of Central and Eastern Europe.Europe. -- Sir Winston Churchill, 1946-- Sir Winston Churchill, 1946
THE TRUMAN DOCTRINEThe “Truman Doctrine”was first used in Greece and Turkey in the late 1940s, vowed to provide aid (money & military supplies) to support “free peoples who are resisting outside pressures”By 1950, the U.S. had given $400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey
THE MARSHALL PLANPost-war Europe was devastated economicallyIn June 1947, Secretary of State George Marshall proposed a U.S. aid package to European nationsWestern Europe accepted the help, while Eastern Europe rejected the aid Over the next four years 16 European countries received $13 billion in U.S. aid By 1952 Western Europe’s economy was flourishing
The Marshall Plan helped Western Europe recover
economically
Marshall Plan aid sent to
European countries
Marshall Aid
cartoon, 1947