Why did the Soviet Union blockade Berlin?
Germany had become a real headache for the Western Allies. After the destruction of war, their zones were in economic chaos. Stalin feared a recovering Germany and wanted to keep it crippled. But it was clear to the Allies that Germany could not feed its people if it was not allowed to rebuild its industries. Although they themselves were wary of rebuilding Germany too quickly, Br Fr and USA combined their zones.
Stalin felt that the USA's handling of western Germany was provocative. He felt that he could stamp his authority on Berlin. It was deep in the Soviet zone and was linked to the western zones of Germany by vitals roads,railway and canals. Stalin believed that this would force the Allies out of Berlin and make Berlin entirely dependent on the USSR.
Truman wanted to show that he was serious about his policy of containment. He wanted Berlin to be a symbol of freedom behind the Iron Courtain.
The only way into Berlin was by air. So the Allies decided to air- lift supplies. As the first planes took off from their bases in west Germany, everyone feared that the Soviets would shoot them down, which would been an act of war. The blockade of Berlin was not going to make the Western Allies give up Berlin, so Stalin reopened communicatios.
Why was NATO set up?.
During the Berlin Blockade, war between the two powers seemd a real possibility, at the height of the crisis, the Western powers met in Washington and signed an agreement to work together. The new organizarion they formed was known as NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Org.)
A divided Germany
A a result of the Berlin blockade, Germany was divided into two nations. The British, French and Americans zones became the Federal Republic of Germany (know as West). The Communist eastern zone was formed onto the German Democratic Republic (or east).
A powerful symbol
Germany would stay a divided country for 41 years. Throught that time Berlin would remain a powerful symbol of Cold War tensions- from the American point of view, an oasis of democratic freedom in the middle of Communist repression, from the Soviet point of view, an invasive cancer growing in the workers' paradise of East Germany.
Berlin it was also a potential flashpoint.
A pattern fot the Cold War
Berlin Blockade set out a pattern for Cold War confrontations. On one hand, the two superpowers and their allies had shown how suspicious they were of each other, how they would obstruct each other in almost any way yhey could. On the other hand, each had shown that it was not willing to go to war with the other. The Berlin Blockade established a sort of tense balance between the superpowers that was to characterise much of the Cold War period.
