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Truman's Rivalry: The Cold War

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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 …show more content…

By establishing the Truman Doctrine, his main goal was to keep other nations who were resisting Communism to be able to stand up for themselves. Since the Soviet Union was in the midst of all Communist activity, Truman knew that Stalin would eventually spread his beliefs into other parts of the world. Fearing that he would lose yet another nation to Stalin, Truman quickly decided that he had to do something to help other countries who were in need of political and monetary aid. As a result, the Truman Doctrine was first created when Truman stood before Congress on March 12, 1947, and asked for $400 million to fight Communist aggression in Greece and Turkey. When Congress approved Truman’s request, he was able to send political, military, and economic assistance to Greece and other democratic nations that were under threat from Stalin (history.state.gov). Truman supported helping the Greek government because he believed that if he did not, a Communist victory in Greece would jeopardize the political stability of Turkey’s government and the Middle East would eventually fall to Communism (history.state.gov). Truman also argued that the security of the United States depended on the safety of other nations worldwide. The Truman Doctrine was efficient because Truman was able to stop Communist aggression in Greece, Turkey, and the Middle East. He was also able to prevent the Soviet Union’s

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