Why did the Cold War end?
Why did the Cold War end? The Cold War took many twists and turns during the time it went on for, but the ending took many mad twists on both sides. Détente saw the two superpowers meet and discuss peacefully for the first time in years, especially after the hostility of the Cuban Missile Crisis. After Détente, things really took a good turn as neither side wanted a nuclear war, and Cuba came close! The end of the Cold War is broken in to three main sections. The failure of Communism is obviously a main part as it is one of the Superpowers. After the Cuban Missile Crisis, it was made out that the USSR had backed down, and Khrushchev resigned. After Khrushchev followed a series of terrible leaders. This really affected the end of the Cold War, as the Communism side couldn't function with an incompetent leader. Although treaties were signed, many things contributed to the fall of Communism. The whole idea Communism was based on meant the Communist economy was neglected, this meant that they had no means of support, especially when the USA stopped trading with them. The USSR finally decided that they did not have the technological ability to keep up with the USA, and when Reagan announced his laser defence system, the USSR decided to just give up trying and spend the little money on saving themselves from poverty. This shows that the USSR were low on money, showing a not-so
The Causes of The Cold War
The Causes of The Cold War Many young historians ask themselves how did the Cold War start? I for one am wondering. But, I suppose the answer to that is quite simple, not straight foreword, but simple. The steps leading up to the Cold War are not as quite as chronological as they were in WW2, when Hitler broke the Treaty Of Versailles, however, the pieces of the puzzle do fit together, and they do make a complete picture. In 1943 and 1945 two conferences were held between President Roosevelt of USA, Prime Minister Churchill of Britain and Stalin of USSR, currently known as Russia. The first conference was held at Teheran in Persia (1943), planning to defeat Germany. The second conference was held just after the defeat of Germany at Yalta in the Crimea (1945). There, the three leaders decided to split Germany four ways, with each bit being controlled by France, Russia, USA or Britain. Before the Potsdam conference in 1945 many changes took place. For one, Roosevelt died so his vice, Harry Truman replaced him. Also Churchill lost the election back home so Attlee was voted in as Prime Minister. The Allies were growing more suspicious of each other. Stalin wanted complete control over Eastern Europe, therefore despising his approval of the free elections of Eastern Europe. Attlee and Truman suspected this. Furthermore, Stalin had the idea that because Attlee and Truman were
When did the Cold War begin?
When did the Cold War begin? Plan of the investigation. Section A The Cold War was a period of conflict between America and the USSR. This was caused by a number of factors including social and economic differences. Their two political systems of capitalism and communism were at complete opposites of the political scale. This conflict never became a 'hot war' but continued through many non-confrontation means such as propaganda and the funding of opposing sides in external conflicts. Because there was never 'hot war' the question of when the Cold War began has been a point of debate. The more orthodox historians such as Arthur M Schlesinger have the view that the Cold War started after the end of the Second World War and was started by the USSR. Others have said that it was the conflict between America and Russian communists in the Bolshevik revolution of 1917. Others have said that it may have been foreign forces intervention in the Russian civil war. Others agree that it was mid way through the Second World War when American forces became more pro active. In this investigation I will try to determine when exactly the Cold War started. Much of the research for this will be from two sources. Firstly the orthodox view of the traditionalist Arthur M Schlesinger jr's book "Origins of the Cold War" and secondly America, Russia, and the Cold War, 1945 - 1996 by Walter Lafeber
Reasons for the Cold War.
Reasons for the Cold War The Yalta and Potsdam peace conferences of 1945 were the beginning of the tensions between the capitalist West and the communist East. The Allies reached agreements on most issues but were still divided on some very important ones. The greatest source of conflict between the East and West was Poland. In 1945 Stalin was the leader of the USSR and attended both peace conferences. Churchill attended the Yalta conference as the leader of Great Britain and was then replaced by Attlee who attended the Potsdam conference. Roosevelt also attended the Yalta conference but sadly died and was replaced by Truman who attended the Potsdam conference. By the end of the Second World War the USSR and the USA were the two superpowers, they had defeated Hitler and the Nazis and this had left both countries very powerful in comparison with the rest of the world at this post war time. Despite the USA and the USSR having been allies during the Second World War there were many disagreements at the peace conferences. These disagreements lead to great tensions between the two superpowers and therefore the Cold War began in 1949. The Cold War was the increasing tension that developed between the two superpowers. The War had two rival sides and there was spying and propaganda from both of these, which also encouraged an arms race. It was not, however a proper war
Who Started the Cold War?
Who Started the Cold War? After World War II, Communism began to spread across several European countries, such as Poland, Romania and Hungary. In the West a strong sense of fear of this ideal quickly began to spread as well. When the Cold War broke out, every nation was involved. The most prominent leaders involved were Churchill, Stalin and Truman. Together, their actions were the cause of the Cold War. After World War II, countries brought forth different views in which to restore Europe, which ultimately led to tensions internationally and as a result, the Cold War began. The President of the United States, Harry Truman, became seen as the dominant player in European affairs. He initiated the Truman Doctrine along with the Marshall Plan which set out to protect the "free" people against Communism. He begins taking control which causes difficulties among European countries. As well, his Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan particularly violated the principles of a group in charge of the well-being of the world; the United Nations. Truman truly discriminates against Communism and began creating a widespread fear of this ideal which presents a huge impact on several European countries. Truman truly disrupts the relations between all nations throughout the world. Truman accurately classifies as the person to have started the Cold War. The Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan,
Causes of the Cold War
Causes of the Cold War There were far reaching ideological, economic and political differences between the United States and the Soviet Union before the start of the Second World War, of which were intensified as a result shared suspicions following the Second World War. . Primary Causes Ideological: The United States and the Soviet Union represent two opposing systems of government. In the United States, the government is elected, and thus influenced by the freedom of elections. The public is able to form political parties in order to express their political positions. Americans also possess the right of assembly, of press, and the right of speech. Now, in the Soviet Union of Russia, the government is fashioned by the hands of the Communist Party. Unlike the United States, the Russian people do not have the right to form their own parties. In addition to this, they are not entitled to the right of assembly, of press, or of speech. These two systems of government are entirely opposed to each other. As a result, there was little room for any compromise whatsoever between Russia and the United States. Economics: The U.S. desired to push for free trade throughout the world; however, Russia desired to defend her own area from international commerce. The fear from the Russian perspective was that trade with the West would involve risking Russia's totalitarian regime at the
Was USA losing cold war
To what extent was the USA losing the Cold War 1949-1960? During this period the USA was increasingly concerned with its global position and the need to contain the growing threat of international communism. The period started badly with the 'fall' of China to communism in 1949. The measure of US success in the Cold War at this time depends upon perception of the American position and whether the USA was content to keep communism contained or showed a willingness to 'roll back' the influence of the USSR and communist expansion. The USA showed different levels of success and failure in different regions and with different technologies. American success overall was much higher than critics have suggested. In 1949 the USA held the nuclear monopoly, this gave an additional force to US diplomacy throughout the world. With the development of the Soviet A-bomb, nuclear stalemate was established. This was a setback for the Americans who then carried out a massive investment programme to develop the more powerful H-bomb, the US dismay it took the Soviets only a year to catch up on this new technology. Although the USA was not behind in this part of the Cold War, the loss of advantage was acutely felt within Washington and broader American society, fear of the Bomb and the effects of radiation were common in US culture and attitudes. American citizens no longer felt as safe
Cold War: Soviet Perspectives
Cold War: Soviet Perspectives After World War II, Joseph Stalin saw the world as divided into two camps: imperialist and capitalist regimes on the one hand, and the Communist and progressive world on the other. In 1947, President Harry Truman also spoke of two diametrically opposed systems: one free, and the other bent on subjugating other nations. After Stalin's death, Nikita Khrushchev stated in 1956 that imperialism and capitalism could coexist without war because the Communist system had become stronger. The Geneva Summit of 1955 among Britain, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States, and the Camp David Summit of 1959 between Eisenhower and Khrushchev raised hopes of a more cooperative spirit between East and West. In 1963 the United States and the Soviet Union signed some confidence-building agreements, and in 1967 President Lyndon Johnson met with Soviet Prime Minister Aleksei Kosygin in Glassboro, New Jersey. Interspersed with such moves toward cooperation, however, were hostile acts that threatened broader conflict, such as the Cuban missile crisis of October 1962 and the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia of 1968. The long rule of Leonid Brezhnev (1964-1982) is now referred to in Russia as the "period of stagnation." But the Soviet stance toward the United States became less overtly hostile in the early 1970s. Negotiations between the United States and
Why did the Cold War start
Why did the Cold War start? After the Second World War, a hostile atmosphere developed between the USA and the USSR, which grew into an intense rivalry called the Cold War. The cause of the Cold War has been attributed by some historians, to the invention of nuclear weapons as it led to distrust and fear between the two nations. The Atomic Bomb had been displayed at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the war and simultaneously alerting the USSR to the power that America now held, as "The Soviets were clearly aware that the weapon existed and rational enough not to tempt the Americans to use them against the Soviet Union."1 However, although the invention of nuclear weapon played a significant part in creating the tension that led to the Cold War, other factors have to be taken into consideration. A key element that has to be taken into consideration is the differing ideological stances of both the USA and the USSR. After the Second World War, America believed that the ideas of fascism were to be replaced with capitalism and democracy, while the USSR believed that it should be replaced with Communism. It has been argued that 'the Cold War is generally regarded as a conflict between the East and West or between communism and capitalism.' 2 The differences in ideological thinking led to the aggressive American policy of Containment and the introduction of the Marshall Aid, which
Was the Cold War Inevitable?
Elias Chamoun 20th century topics R5 - Richardson 2/18/2004 WAS THE COLD WAR INEVITABLE? With the end of WWII, the Soviet Union and the United States confronted each other for dominance over a pile of, exhausted and chaotic countries. The historical magnitude and consequences of the Second World War were destined to cast the Soviet Union and US in the fatal role of antagonists with no third state powerful enough to balance and relieve the acute security dilemma (China was not as powerful as the US or USSR). The enormous destruction wrought upon the Soviet Union by the German war machine in WWII was bound to produce a quest for maximum security needs. The Soviets lost nearly 9 million soldiers and more than 27 million civilians; nearly 1,710 cities and settlements, 70,000 towns and villages, and over 6 million buildings of all kinds were devastated.1 The government of any nation suffering such staggering losses would be bound to seek to take measures against any such catastrophe ever occurring again. The Soviet Union engaged in a supreme wartime effort to conquer as much of the vital borderlands as possible. As long as this effort also served the common purpose of defeating the Axis, its implications for the future were passed over in silence or veiled with some ambiguous and face-saving formula by Roosevelt and Churchill. But as victory drew near, the necessity for
