I.

Before the Cold War

A. World War II and the emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as superpowers

The political term ‘Superpower’ rotates around superiority with regard to economic, political and
military status in comparison to weaker and less developed countries. It is as a result of this fact
that Superpowers are of vital importance with regard to the regulation of global interaction.
The U.S. became a world power in 1898 when it seized control of the Spanish Empire. This
allowed the U.S. to project its power across the planet. However, other countries increasingly
challenged it.
The world community witnessed the allegiance of the "United States," "France," and "Soviet
Union" in addition to the "Great Britain" during World War II. The Second World War
fundamentally altered how the world looked. The human and material costs were the highest that
mankind had ever experienced. Europe was completely disorganised, in ruins, and on its knees.
Traditional trade routes had been severed, factories had been wrecked, and there were
widespread shortages of food and raw materials. These nations joined forces to put an end to
Adolph Hitler's dictatorship and the Nazi Party, as well as to secure peace for the German people
and implement a containment plan for upcoming Japanese and Italian invasion. However, these
governments remained the planet's most potent governing bodies at the time of this worldwide
conflict. There was a brief rapprochement between the two nations during World War II due to
both nations having the common goal of defeating Nazi Germany; however, after the war ended,
a long period of conflict began. This conflict was known as the Cold War.

B. The Yalta Conference and the disagreements between the US and USSR

The Yalta Conference played a significant role in the conclusion of World War II and the start of
the Cold War. The Yalta Conference, a gathering of the leaders of the Allied nations during the
war, took place from February 4 to February 11, 1945. The meeting was held near to the Yalta, a
present-day city of Crimea, Ukraine. The three Allied nations met with the goal of starting
discussions about how to restructure Europe after Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany were
vanquished. Although the Second World War in Europe had not yet come to a conclusion, the
Allies could see that it was about to end and that Germany would soon be vanquished. The three
leaders were hoped to reach a consensus on how to divide up Europe after the war.
For the Yalta Conference, each leader had a plan in mind: Stalin wanted a Soviet sphere of
political influence in Eastern and Central Europe, Churchill pushed for free elections and
democratic governments in Eastern and Central Europe (particularly Poland), and Roosevelt
wanted Soviet support in the U.S. Pacific War against Japan and Soviet membership in the UN.
One major disagreement was regarding the fate of Poland. The super powers had to make
compromises on the issue of Poland. Stalin intended to annex Polish land and give it to Poland so
that it might annex German land. The other two agreed to let him have his way with Poland but
forced him to stay out of Greece's civil conflict between monarchists and Communists. Europe
was divided into communist & capitalist countries — Winston Churchill called this an Iron
Curtain.

C. The beginning of tensions between the US and USSR and the Truman Doctrine

In this highly charged international environment, US President Harry S. Truman deviated from
the Roosevelt administration's position and rewrote the rules governing the nation's foreign
policy. The President laid out his containment strategy, which aimed to offer financial and
military support to the nations endangered by Soviet Union, in a speech to the US Congress on
March 12, 1947. The Truman Doctrine, which was unmistakably intended to halt the rise of
Communism, positioned the United States as the protector of a free world in the face of Soviet
aggression. A 400 million dollar aid package was given to Greece and Turkey. President Truman
of the USA said that he would help countries resisting the spread of communism — known as
containment. This policy was called the ‘Truman Doctrine’. The Americans pushed Turkey to
oppose Soviet claims to ownership of naval sites in the Bosphorus by implementing the
containment concept. Additionally, they managed to get the Russian military to leave Iran. While
this was going on, the United States established the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and
coordinated efforts to stop Soviet espionage since March 1947. The United States had
historically shied away from European conflicts, but these changes to US foreign policy were a
significant turnabout in its history.
Moreover, After WW2, Europe was in ruins - unemployment, homelessness, poverty & hunger
were common. This attracted people to communism. To prevent the spread of communism,
George Marshall (US Secretary for State) proposed Marshall Aid — providing billions of dollars
to rebuild Europe. Stalin forced his communist states to refuse Marshall Aid.
The USA believed in democracy (a government by the people, for the people) while the USSR
believed in dictatorship (a one-party government). Further, USA believed in capitalism
(industry/property to be owned by private individuals) while the USSR believed in communism
(government ownership of business & industry).