Transcript The Cold War Begins

The Cold War Begins
Section 1
Ms. Garratt
American History
Uneasy Alliance
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Soviets resented the US for several reasons
Allies tried to undermine Russ Rev in 1917
 US didn’t recognize USSR until 1933
 Allies refusal to open 2nd front against Hitler until
June 1944
 Soviets feared capitalist nations were trying to
destroy it
 Soviets felt the need to have “friendly” govs in
Eastern Europe
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US Distrust of Soviets
Communism called for worldwide
revolution
 Comintern since 1920s
 Brest-Litovsk Treaty 1918
 Nazi-Soviet Pact 1939
 Soviet purges & collectivization
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Soviet View of the post-WWII World
Order
Soviets lost 20 million people & suffered
massive destruction during WWII
 Soviets wanted to protect themselves from
another invasion
 Wanted weakened, unarmed Germany
 Wanted to surround USSR with “proSoviet” (e.g. Communist) governments
 Historically
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US View of the World
Wanted democratic, free world open to
business expansion
 Free-trade for American products
 Belief that US had mission such as
Manifest Destiny to lead the way
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Yalta Conference 1945
Yalta Conference 1945
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Meeting of Big Three (FDR, Churchill, Stalin)
Brit wanted to save its empire
Stalin & Britain wanted spheres of influence
US wanted Soviets to join in war against Japan which
Soviets agreed to do
Stalin pledged support for UN
Stalin wanted spheres of influence in Asia
Disagreed about Germany-Stalin wanted $20 billion
US & Brit knew Germany could not pay and they
would end up financing Germany so that it could pay
Stalin
Yalta Conference & Eastern Europe
Stalin wanted recognition of Soviet power
in Poland, Rumania, Bulgaria, Austria,
Hungary & Czechoslovakia
 Ironic because war began over freedom of
Poland
 Reluctantly agreed to Soviet sphere of
influence in Eastern Europe bc US
desperately wanted Soviet help against
Japan
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Yalta 1945
Formation of the United
Nations
Main purpose was to “maintain
international peace and security
Formation of the United Nations
By Oct 1945 UN charter was approved
General Assembly in which all nations had
one vote
Any majority vote could be vetoed by any
one of the 5-member Security Council
Potsdam Conference 1945
Potsdam Conference 1945
Potsdam Conference
1st meeting of Truman & Stalin
 Truman learned of successful test of
atomic bomb while at Potdam
 Reached agreement on Germany
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Germ would be disarmed & industry
dismantled
 Divided Germ into zones
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Containment Policy
US policy to prevent the expansion of
Communism
 Will lead to military aid (e.g. Truman
Doctrine 1947)
 And economic aid (Marshall Plan
 Brain child of George Kennan
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US View of Soviet Intentions
Truman Doctrine 1947
Truman Doctrine
Truman Doctrine was a way to implement
containment policy
 Military aid to free people who were
”resisting attempted subjugation by armed
minorities or outside pressure”
 Provided $400 m in immediate aid to
Greek & Turkey
 The Cold War was now if full swing due to
2 conflicting world views & ideology
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What is this cartoon saying?
The Marshall Plan 1947
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan.
Generosity or enlightened selfinterest?
You Decide.
For revisionist view of the
Marshall Plan see Web site
below
http://www.vho.org/tr/2004/2/Bassler123126.html
Checkpoint Charlie became a
symbol of the Cold War
US View of the World post WWII