The situation was exacerbated with the division of Berlin. One of the biggest problems for was that the German people in the Russian sector could see the prosperity in the western zones, which was not being replicated in either East Berlin or Eastern Germany. The Allied occupation of Berlin was becoming an increasing embarrassment for Stalin who saw the solution as a unified Berlin under the control of the East. However this required the removal of the allies from West Berlin.
Stalin knew he could not forcibly remove the Allies and recognised the strength of the USA with its nuclear capability. Under the premise of “Technical difficulties” Stalin ordered the closing of all rail lines, canals and roads that entered West Berlin through the Russian sector, cutting off supplies of and fuel. In reality the motive was for the west to capitulate and withdraw from Berlin, leaving the USSR in control. The West saw this as the first step toward the invasion of Germany and the expansion of communism across Europe and were determined that all possible measures should be taken to prevent the fall of Berlin.
The only way for the Allies to supply their sectors in Berlin was to fly in supplies. Stalin would not dare to shoot down Allied planes with America's atomic supremacy. The Berlin Airlift lasted for 11 months and when it became clear that the Allies would stand firm, gave in. The Allies remained in their sectors in Berlin. President Truman said “When we refused to be forced out of Berlin, we demonstrated to Europe that we could act when freedom was threatened.” The crisis according to Russia was planned in Washington, but I think the Russian government just didn’t want to take the blame for the blockade.
The period also saw the establishment of NATO under the North Atlantic Treaty signed on April 4, 1949 by Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the United States. Its aim was to safeguard the freedom of the North Atlantic community and was also designed to encourage political, economic, and social cooperation. The USSR saw this purely as a pact of aggression aimed against the East on the basis that none of the states were under the threat of attack. Clearly they were justified in their concerns, as this was a period of great mistrust and suspicion and they had been invaded twice in the last thirty years.
The Berlin crisis from 1945 to 1950 seemed to symbolise all that the stood for and became a symbol for western democracy during the expansionism of communism across the Balkans. The division between East and West became known as the ‘Iron Curtain’. Initially the term related to the difference in values and ideals between East and West but did not prevent the flow of refugees moving to the West. However in May1952 East Germany blocked off its western border and guards erected barbed wire along its border as protection against “spies, terrorists and smugglers”.
West Berlin continued to remain an annoyance to the Soviet leaders as it was an advertisement for the economic success of Western Europe. Further East Germans could move freely in to West Berlin and then on to West Germany. This became a continual source of embarrassment as between 1949 and 1960 approximately three million people left East Germany. This was a major coup for the West as these people were leaving the communist that supposedly looked after its workers and families to look for a better life in the capitalist West. Among these 3 million people were highly qualified men who were of little value to the West but were skilled workers that East Germany could not afford to lose. By 1961, the number of refugees fleeing to the West represented about one-sixth of East Germany's population.
On August 12th 1961, a 4,000 people made their way to West Berlin to start a new life in the West. This pushed the communist authorities into taking action.
Berlin was to become the centre of the again in later years with the of the . Russia was determined that Berlin would never be the capital of a united Germany and would never regain their powerful status to start another world war. The border between East and West Berlin was closed in 1961 and a barbed wire fence was erected to prevent East Germans crossing the border to the West. Soon the barbed wire was being removed and replaced with a wall of concrete blocks. Within days, West Berlin was surrounded by a wall four meters high and 111 kilometres long. The Wall had 300 watch towers manned by selected border guards (the ZOPO) and 50 bunkers. By the end of August, the Wall seemed all but impossible to cross. The East German authorities tried to justify the Wall by claiming that the West was using West Berlin as a centre for spying and that the Wall was for keeping out spies. They called the Wall "the anti-fascist protection barrier". Source five section C states that “In no other part of the world are so may espionage (spy) centres to be found. These centres smuggle their agents into the GDR for all kinds of subversion: recruiting spies, sabotage, provoking disturbances.”
President Kennedy was not concerned about the building of the Berlin wall because he felt that if Russia intended to attack they would have done it by now. “The crisis is over. If the Russians wanted to attack us and cut off the routes, they wouldn’t be putting up a barbed wire….. I’m not going to get het up about it.” Kennedy believed Russia was not preparing for war with America, although he was strongly supportive of West Berlin, when he said “Ich bin ein Berliner” he was reassuring the citizens of West Berlin, that with all the conflict going on between the two sides their future was safe.
The erection of the Berlin Wall was one of the tragedies of the Twentieth Century. It became a symbol of the division between East and West and did nothing to enhance relations between the USSR and USA. It divided families and caused untold suffering for thousands of people. If there was any way the USSR could regard the Berlin Wall as a success, it was only in the reduction of the number of people defecting to the West. Although it could be argued, this also reduced the number of spies being able to operate in Eastern Berlin. Politically there was little justification for the Berlin Wall and it only supported the West in the view that communism was failing as the constant flow of refugees to the West had to be stopped. The view was given further credence when 41 Germans were killed crossing the wall in the first year. It could also be argued the Wall helped to avert the threat of Nuclear War.
The relations between the East and the West subsequently improved during the late 1960’s and 1970’s as agreements between West Germany and East Germany were signed in the Basic Treaty. More trade, cultural, sporting and personal contacts were to follow. This was only possible with Russia’s co-operation. As relations improved, tensions between the East and West eased and during the 1980’s there was an end to communism in many parts of Eastern Europe. This sounded the death knell for the Iron Curtain and the Berlin Wall since anyone who wanted to leave East Germany could simply travel to other communist countries and cross to the West. Finally in 1989 in response to unprecedented pressure the East German Government opened the border to the West. The Cold War was effectively drawing to a close.
The end of World War 2 was a very turbulent time and as has been noted was a period of much distrust and suspicion. Stalin did much to arouse the West’s fears by his actions. First he failed to keep the promises agreed at the Yalta conference by not supporting the USA in the War against Japan. Of greater significance there were no free elections in Eastern Europe and communist regimes were established in Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Rumania and Bulgaria. Perhaps the most aggressive move that Stalin made was the takeover of Czechoslovakia in February 1948. The fact that the communists seized power in Czechoslovakia by means of an armed rebellion was seen by the West as signalling the intention to create a communist Europe. Stalin was also responsible for cutting off West Berlin from the West Germany severing all road, rail and canal links and for blocking off the border with the West. Ultimately the policy led to the building of the Berlin Wall.
However it would be inaccurate to lay the blame for the Cold War entirely on the Soviet Union. Russia had been invaded twice by Germany and believed itself justified in protecting its borders and wanting to set up a buffer zone of loyal Governments. Many of the countries in Eastern Europe had been used by Germany to invade Russia during World War 2 and the Russians had suffered a huge loss of life. There was a genuine fear that Russia could come under further attack if Germany was re-united and they needed to ensure Germany remained de militarised. Stalin’s policies were therefore aimed at making Russia strong and secure from future attack.
It should also be noted that Berlin was in East Germany, located in the Russian zone so strictly speaking should have been their territory. The situation was not helped by the flow of refugees to the West, which contributed to the economic problems faced by East Germany, or the insensitivity of the West in establishing Berlin as a centre for subversive activity.
The West also did much aggravate the situation and contribute to the Cold War. The Truman Doctrine emerged in 1947, with the offer of help to any country fighting a communist takeover, a policy deliberately to contain communism. In addition the Marshall Plan was also established, which was a programme offering economic aid to European states to help them recover from the war, although ultimately this was only given to Western democracies. Such policies were viewed as aggressive offering money and weapons to the enemies of the Soviet Union. The speeches made by Truman were also very confrontational particularly his speech to the US congress March 1947. “Force is the only thing the Russians understand” … “It relies on terror and oppression … I believe it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or outside pressure”. Clearly such an approach intensified an already delicate situation. Neither did the West help the situation with the creation of NATO, which was again seen as an aggressive move aimed at the USSR.
It can be seen that there were many causes which led to the complex situation of the Cold War. Add to this the mistrust and suspicion common at the time and the misunderstandings of policies and it is clear the blame for the Cold War cannot be placed on any one person or country. Although many of the tensions that existed in the Cold War can be attributed to Stalin's policy of Soviet expansion, the argument cannot be sustained that they were entirely responsible. Rather it developed as a series of events, which occurred as the struggle for supremacy between the Superpowers escalated.
