Name: Origins of the Cold War Period: FORMER ALLIES CLASH The US and Soviet Union had very different ambitions for the future Soviet Communism v. American Capitalism Joseph Stalin totalitarian, leader of the Soviet Union Americans and Soviets became more suspicious of each other during the war Relations worsened after Stalin learned that the US had tried to keep its development of the atomic bomb secret, even after they agreed to help in the Pacific THE UNITED NATIONS (UN) TRUMAN BECOMES PRESIDENT Hopes for world peace were high at the end of the war Key figure in early conflicts with the Soviets was Harry Truman Symbol of hope was the UNITED NATIONS (UN) Was not aware of important decisions made when he was Vice President under April 25, 1945: the representatives of 50 nations met in San Francisco to FDR; he did not even know that the atomic bomb was being constructed establish this new peacekeeping body When he became President after the June 25: 1945: the delegates signing the charter establishing the UN death of FDR, many Americans doubted his ability to serve as President Ironically formed to promote peace around the world, it soon became an arena in which the two superpowers competed. He was tough and honest which would make him a strong candidate for his time in office because of the decisions that had to be made US and the Soviet Union used the UN as a forum to spread their influence over others POTSDAM CONFERENCE July 1945: THE BIG THREE United States (Truman), Great Britain (Attlee), and the Soviet Union (Stalin) Met at the final wartime conference at Potsdam same countries were the ones that were present at the Yalta Conference in February 1945 with new leaders At Yalta, Stalin promised Roosevelt that he would allow free elections a vote by secret ballot in a multi-system party in Poland and other parts of Eastern Europe that Soviets occupied at the end of the war July 1945: Stalin did not keep his promise and the Soviets actually prevented free party elections in Poland and banned democratic parties
TENSIONS MOUNT Truman s goal in demanding free elections was to spread democracy to nations that had been under Nazi rule he soon saw this as a disaster and Stalin was not helping Truman wanted to create a new world in which all nations had the right to selfdetermination BARGAINING AT POTSDAM SOVIETS TIGHTEN THEIR GRIP ON At Yalta, the Soviets had wanted to EASTERN EUROPE take reparations from Germany to help The Soviet Union emerged from the war repay wartime losses Truman rejected as a nation of enormous economic and that at Potsdam military strength Later agreed that the Soviets, British, Americans, and the French would take reparations mainly from their own occupation zones in Germany US industries and economies boomed during the war and made the US an economic leader of the world American businesses wanted access to raw materials in Eastern Europe, and they wanted to be able to sell goods to Eastern European countries Since the Soviets lost about 20 million people, they felt justified in their claim to Eastern Europe Stalin installed communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Poland. These nations are called SATELLITE NATIONS Stalin later said that Communism and Capitalism were incompatible and that another war was inevitable. UNITED STATES ESTABLISHED A POLICY OF CONTAINMENT Containment: taking measures to prevent any extension of communist rule to other countries The policy of Containment became the guide to Truman s foreign policy Europe was divided: WEST: DEMOCRATIC / EAST: COMMUNIST Winston Churchill said and Iron Curtain has fallen across Europe
COLD WAR IN EUROPE Cold War: Conflict between the US and the Soviet Union in which neither nation directly confronted each other on the battlefield The Cold War dominated both global affairs and the US foreign policy from 1945 until the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 TRUMAN DOCTRINE US first tried to contain Soviet influence in Greece and Turkey and the British were providing them with aid, but the British economy was hurt so badly by the war they asked the US to take over Truman asked Congress for $400 million TRUMAN DOCTRRINE: It must be the policy of the US to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures Congress agreed with Truman that this was the only way to keep Soviet influence from spreading MARSHALL PLAN: Western Europe was in total chaos most of the factories had been bombed or looted; millions of people were living in refugee camps Severe weather in the winter of 1946-1947 caused damage of crops and froze rivers cutting off transportation and causing a fuel shortage June 1947: Secretary of State George Marshall proposed that the US provide aid to all European nations that needed it and that this move was directed not against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos MARSHALL PLAN: revive European hopes; sixteen countries received $13 billion in aid Western European economy was flourishing and the Communist Party lost much of its appeal to voters
SUPERPOWERS STRUGGLE OVER GERMANY US and Soviets clash over the unification of Germany WWII caused Germany to be divided into four different zones (Great Britain, France, and US in the west and the Soviets in the east) 1948: Britain, France, and the US wanted to combine their three zones into one and the western part of Berlin was no surrounded by Soviet-occupied territory The three countries had no written contract with the Soviets guaranteeing free access to Berlin by road or railroad Stalin closed all highways and rail routes into West Berlin because he thought that he would be able to take over the western zones from Britain, France, and the US No food or fuel could reach that part of the city and as a result the 2.1 million residents of the city had only enough food to last for approximately five weeks THE BERLIN AIRLIFT BERLIN AIRLIFT: Because of the desperation in western Berlin the US and Britain started to fly food and supplies to West Berlin For 327 days, planes took off and landed every few minutes: 277,000 flights brought in 2.3 million tons of supplies from food to medicine, fuel, and Christmas presents West Berlin survived because of the airlift May 1949: Soviets realized they were beaten and lifted the blockade The western part of Germany was now a new nation called the Federal Republic of Germany which included West Berlin A few months later, the Soviets create the German Democratic Republic which was called East Germany and included East Berlin THE NATO ALLIANCE Berlin blockade increased Western European fears of Soviet aggression Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Portugal joined the US and Canada on April 4, 1949 to form a defensive military alliance called the NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION, or NATO. All twelve members pledged military support to one another in case any member was attacked First time US has ever entered a military alliance; Cold War ended any hope to return to US isolationists feelings Greece and Turkey later joined in 1952 and West Germany in 1955 NATO kept a standing military force of more than 500,000 troops as well as thousands of planes, tanks, and other equipment