Cold War Tension Dbq

Imagine two superpowers, once allies, now enemies. Weapons of mass destruction; stockpiled, but never used in battle. A war, never fought. From 1945 through 1950, the wartime alliance between the U.S.A. and Soviet Union deteriorated. Several times, during the next four decades, these powers clashed, though never physically. This period of fear and suspense was dubbed as the “Cold War”. But what what weapons were used to fight a war that was never physically fought? These “weapons” used fight the Cold War were economics, political alliances, and nuclear munition.

The Cold War lasted forty plus years and these conflicting ideologies threatened peace throughout the world, consequently the battle verses communism and democracy was at the root of the Cold War conflict. Social, political, and economic conditions of the world were influenced by the ongoing threats of the Cold War. In the Soviet Union, communist rulers firmly controlled all aspects of Soviet life and they dominated Eastern Europe through imperialism. The Soviet government held a tight grip on its citizens and used fear to control them, hence western influences were forbidden because the government thought it would poison and threaten their beliefs. The government and economy was often unstable and was frequently on the verge of collapse,

The Cold War Era started in 1946 and lasted until 1989 when the Berlin war fell signifying its end. Many events happened through this time period that shaped American culture and brought us to where we are today. It all started in march 1947, which reflected the combativeness of president Harry Truman. Secretary George c Marshall told Europe that that policy of the United States was not directed “ against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos.” in 1947 the brutish announced that they could no longer support the pro western governments of the Mediterranean in their fight against communism. If the US could not take up the burden the whole region was in danger of falling under communist roll. March 12th

Simply put, In a Communist system, individual people do not own land, factories, or machinery. Instead, the government or the whole community owns these things. The ultimate goal of communism is to create a classless society and creating a dictatorship (A government in which one ruler has complete control over a country.) For nearly 35 years, the Cold War took place between the Soviet Union and the United States. The war was referred to as cold because there was never any physical fighting between the two countries. The Cold War essentially began due to political and military clashes between the two countries. After WW2, the United States sought for stronger united Germany and independent nations in Eastern Europe. The United States president

The Cold War caused people to question the United States’ government’s reliability and strength, which negatively affected America’s domestic affairs and foreign policies. Citizens lost respect and trust in the government and other civilians, due to several threats within the country and worldwide. People were left questioning their rights and safety due to the second Red Scare, which threatened the coming of power of communism within America. Various forms of propaganda advertised fears, causing panic to spread throughout the country. Russia’s gain of power throughout Eurasia showed off the USSR’s strength and abilities, threatening the Western Powers. The arms race caused tensions between the U.S. and USSR, bringing them closer to the brink

The end of World War II should have marked a period of relief in America but instead, it lead America into a completely different type of war called the Cold War. The Cold War was an ongoing state of political and military tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. This constant state of tension and fear had been embedded deep in the American public. The American people feared the spread of communism and nuclear war in the aftermath of the Second World War, while President Eisenhower addressed these fears by having strong domestic and foreign policies.

The Cold War was an icy rivalry that developed between the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II. This rivalry first developed because the two conflicting nations had different ideas of successful economies. The United States believed that capitalism, in which private owners control trade and industry was more efficient than Communism, in which the state or government control trade and industry. In addition, many of the events that occurred at The Yalta Conference played a significant role in the cause of this era of competition that lasted from 1947 to 1991. At Yalta, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin agreed that Poland’s government would include members of the pre-war Polish government and that free elections would be held

There are three competing theories of the causes of the Cold War; the traditional theory, the liberal theory, and the ideological theory. In all three theories lie causes that could have equally contributed to the conflict, but only one is more convincing than the others.

Containment also provided supplies and defended democracy in an area of adverse communist influence peacefully. Finally, containment helped the world dodge a full-scale nuclear world war and gave Russia a taste of its own blockade-flavoured medicine in the Cuban Missile Crisis. If George Kennan’s Long Telegram (discussed in Document A) had not been published, the US and democracy itself may have been oblivious to the Soviet Agenda. Kennan stated in Document A : “1. Stalin and the Soviets believe that communism is better than capitalism. 2. Stalin and the Soviets believe they will win.” By knowing the Soviets’ true intentions to be in perpetual war with capitalism until it would be eradicated, the US and its democratic allies could contain

Some historians believe the Cold War was inevitable because of the hostilities from both America and the Soviet Union after World War II. America believed that the USSR was an expansionist country trying to spread an evil, communistic idea throughout the world. Although the countries never directly fought against each other, as they only fought in proxy wars, there was still extreme conflict. The United States responded to the Soviets actions in Germany, Europe, and their national actions. These responses were justifiable, or so many Americans at the time believed. Many realized that the Soviet Union was a terrible foe to face, as George Kennan, a respected American diplomat, noticed. He said in “The Sources of Soviet Conduct,” “This means

"The Cold War was an ideological contest between the western democracies especially the United States and the Communist countries that emerged after the Second World War" (Tindall 972). The United States and the Soviet Union had differences over issues such as human rights, individual liberties, economic freedom, and religious belief. "Mutal suspicion and a race to gain influence and control over the so called nonaligned or third world countries further polarized" (Tindall 945). After the WWII Soviets dominate European countries and thought the U.S. had the same motives.

One option during the Cuban Missile Crisis was to go into an all out nuclear war. None of the countries wanted this option, but it was still possible. This is true because in Document C it says, “The most important thing for us is to get an agreement as soon as possible.” This proves that both the USSR and the US wanted to come to a quick

The nuclear arms race was directly correlated with rising tensions during the cold war. After one nation made an advancement the other would quickly counter with something combatable. To further the illustration, the Soviet Union learned Eisenhower was beginning to stockpile weapons leading the development of the Soviet Union own H-Bomb. Next Soviets launched the first intercontinental ballistic missile, and the United States countered by deploying intermediate range missiles in allying European countries. Each country raising the stakes, nudging the other to retaliation in weapon advancements.

The Cold War is a very significant event, and perhaps one of the most important throughout US history. The Cold War shaped American in many aspects like, foreign policy, political ideology (ism’s), economy, the presidency, and lives of American’s. According to APA, (American Psychological Association) the Cold War was, “intense economic, political, military, and ideological rivalry between nations, short of military conflict; sustained hostile political policies and an atmosphere of strain between opposed countries.” The Cold War on foreign policy had to step up against the Soviet Union, the strategy they implemented was called “containment”. Containment was a policy used by the US using strategies to prevent the spread of communism overseas

“Communism has never come to power in a country that was disrupted by war or internal corruption, or both.” - John F. Kennedy, July 1963. All of the Cold War Presidents had some ways of dealing with Communism. Truman and also Eisenhower had their same ways of dealing Communism.However Eisenhower was using Military Response, but Kennedy used Flexible Response. Edward Ayers stated in their book, The American Anthem, the Cold War was an time period when the US and the Soviet Union were against each other because of when they had conflicts between each other, but mostly from the Berlin Crisis (819). A Belief that all property and resources are owned by a certain person (Ayers 594). Two of the most superpower nations were struggling with each other