Day 32 – Q 2. What were the principle factors leading to the Cold War? Discuss.
2. What were the principle factors leading to the Cold War? Discuss.
शीत युद्ध के कारक क्या थे? चर्चा करें।
Introduction:
The Cold War was a geopolitical chess match between the United States, the Soviet Union, and both parties’ allies in which the major power players sought to project their respective ideologies across the globe in the wake of colonialism’s collapse following World War Two.
Body:
Factors leading to the Cold War:
- Different ideologies- USA wanted to spread democracy and control communism using its Containment policy (creating alliances and helping weak countries resist Soviet advances), whereas Soviet Union wanted to encourage communism in other countries.
- Difference in goals- Where USA wanted to gain access to raw materials and markets to fuel its booming industries; Soviet Union wanted to rebuild its war-ravaged economy using Eastern Europe’s industrial equipment and raw materials.
- Potsdam Conference- The allies refused to open a second war front against Germany which made Soviet Union suspicious of the intentions of Allies.
- Soviet’s Wall of Satellite Nations- The Soviet Union regarded the countries along its western border as a necessary buffer, or wall of protection. It installed or secured Communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Poland, and Yugoslavia. It created ‘The Iron Curtain’ that represents Europe’s division between a mostly democratic Western Europe and a Communist Eastern Europe.
- The Truman Doctrine- It provided support for countries that rejected communism. It provided over $400 million in aid to Turkey and Greece.
- The Marshall Plan- America gave aid to the needy European countries in form of food, machines, and other materials. The plan achieved spectacular success in Western Europe and in Yugoslavia.
- The Berlin Airlift- In 1948, France, Britain, and the United States decided to withdraw their forces from Germany to allow their three occupation zones to form one nation. Soviet Union responded with the blockade of West Berlin. Seeing the city in starvation, American and British flew food and supplies into West Berlin. This incidence created another rift in the already tensed relations.
- UN factor- Soviet Union’s refusal to become part of UN for long time and UN’s failure in establishing a global order.
- The Berlin Airlift- In 1948, France, Britain, and the United States decided to withdraw their forces from Germany to allow their three occupation zones to form one nation. Soviet Union responded with the blockade of West Berlin.
Conclusion:
The cold war though involved hostilities among nations and a prolonged ongoing conflict in a bipolar world, it still the globe from another world war.
Best answer: Teja D
