Following the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman inherited the position of President of the United States. It was immediately clear that Truman lacked skills in dealing with foreign affairs. Easily influenced by Averell Harriman, a diplomat and the Secretary of Commerce, Truman did not rely on his own decisions as the leader of the United States. His indecisiveness and vulnerability would lead to several defective decisions. A specific instance of Truman’s lack of experience was during a meeting held at the Oval Office with Vyacheslav Molotov, Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Ambassador Gromyko. Truman conveyed his great disappointment in the Soviet Union for not fulfilling its role in the Yalta agreement regarding Poland. Throughout the meeting, Truman grew increasingly hostile, disrespectfully interjecting several times to make his point clear. This offended Molotov, and overall, tarnished the United States’ relationship with Russia. Truman’s immaturity hampered the relationship between the two countries, and was a significant factor leading to the Cold War.
Another factor that led to the start of the Cold War was the disunity between the U.S government officials. After Roosevelt’s death, the United States’ view on Russia shifted from trusting to great suspicion. Also, Truman’s war cabinet became very separated in their views, and could no longer stay in consensus. This disunity between these officials and the President led to an unstable government in the United States and the making of poor decisions.
Shortly before the Potsdam Conference, on the 24th of July, Truman mentioned to Stalin that the United States was in possession of a new weapon with incredible destructive power. This posed as a large concern for Russia, who felt the animosity felt towards them by the United States. Stalin knew he had to take action, and the evening after Truman’s sly remark, Stalin ordered his chief nuclear scientist, Kurchatov, to accelerate Russia’s work on developing an atomic bomb.
The United States had opportunities to come to terms with Russia, but declined. After the Soviet Union declared war on Japan on August 9th, they attempted to reach an agreement on how to force a Japanese surrender with the United States. Molotov offered the Soviet Union’s last effort for an agreement with the United States by addressing Harriman, who immediately rejected the idea without consulting with any other U.S officials, even President Truman.
The United States’ last opportunity to make amends with Russia was suggested by Colonel Stimson. Stimson, a former member of Roosevelt and Truman’s cabinet of war, realized that ‘the only way to make a man trustworthy is to trust him’. He felt that the United States needed to intervene with Russia, divulging their secrets of constructing an atomic bomb. This would put an end to the Soviet Union’s fear, suspicion, and distrust of the United States, which could have possibly prevented the Cold War from beginning. Unfortunately, the United States failed to listen to Colonel Stimson’s suggestion for peace with Russia, and decided that it would be best not to share their military secrets with Russia. The United States’ greed for increasing its nuclear stockpile blinded it from coming to terms with Russia, and preventing the Cold War. The arms race had officially begun.
Arguments can also be made that Russia was to blame for the Cold War. Because of its previous actions of invading other western European countries, the United States did not trust Russia. Also, the Soviets intended to occupy Poland and enforce communism. International views of Russia were very strained and not very trusting of the country’s intentions. Had Russia come to terms with other countries and put an end to any concerns about its’ intentions, the Cold War could have potentially been prevented. If there was no tension felt with Russia, the Cold War would never have happened. Because of Russia’s imperialistic intentions and attempts to spread communism, the rest of the world felt intimidated, which acted as the fuel for starting the Cold War.
The blame for the start of the Cold War belongs to the United States. Russia also had an impact in the start of the arms race due to the paranoia the country induced to the rest of the world. The struggles within the United States’ government made it very unstable, and would lead to several atrocious decisions. Had the United States been wiser with its foreign affairs, the Cold War could have been prevented.
by
streeterpeter (student)
