reasons and development of Cold War

7 origins of Cold War

7 | Origins and development of the Cold War 1945-1955 Impact of WWII on Europe (factors that would later contribute to Cold War tensions) ● 36 million Europeans killed ● Infrastructure of roads, railways, bridges and canals had been destroyed ● No gas, electricity or running water in many areas ● Disease and malnutrition were widespread ● Homelessness — 50 million people had lost/been forced to leave their homes A new political landscape ● Decline of the Western European powers — Europe, Britain, France and Germany would no longer be dominant players ● Emergence of superpowers — United States and the USSR EARLY TENSIONS BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND USSR 1 — Competing ideologies Russia —> communist. The United States feared communism ideologies and felt that communism would threaten their way of life United States —> democratic. The USSR believed that the US was acting selfishly to build its own economic empire and political influence in the world 2 — Suspicion and mistrust before 1939 ● The USSR’s communist vision was aligned to the communist manifesto which called for worldwide communist revolutions to overthrow capitalist states, alarming Western European democratic countries ● Paris peace conference in 1919 decided Germany would not be broken up to act as a barrier against communism ● Russia civil war 1918 — 1921 : the whites were supported by US and British troops ● Red Scare 1920s —US government arrested and imprisoned many people (usually immigrants from Russia, accusing them of being communist agents ● Policy of appeasement 1930s — to some extent, this policy was driven by fear that the USSR was trying to spread communism by force. The British hoped that Germany would oppose communism. The policy threatened the USSR’s security as it seemed to imply that Hitler was allowed to take over Eastern Europe ● Nazi-soviet non aggression pact 1939 — surprised the world because the USSR had discussed an alliance against Hitler with Britain and France Yalta and Potsdam The Yalta Conference, February 1945

At that time, it was obvious that the allies were going to win the war. The USSR and the US dominated the discussions, but had differing views. views reasons the United states ● Believed in having peace, safety and prosperity in a post war world ● Believed that democracy and capitalism is a model for international development. It was also a means to gain political influence and benefit economically through trade ● Believed that the recovery of Western Europe was essential for international stability and US prosperity from trade ● alarmed by the Soviet supported communist parties in Eastern Europe who seemed to be making their moves based on the communist manifesto ● Trade with Europe was disrupted due to WWII USSR ● Wanted to establish buffer states to prevent another invasion ● Believed that Eastern Europe must remain friendly to the USSR for its own security ● Wanted massive war reparations from Germany to repair its own economy and ensure that Germany could not threaten it again ● the USSR was invaded by Germany twice through Poland ● WWII resulted in at least 20 million Soviet citizens dead and devastation of the USSR’s industries and cities Agreements during the Yalta Conference ● The USSR to enter the war against Japan once Germany had surrendered ● Germany (and Berlin) to be divided into four zones: US, French, Britain and Soviet ● Nazi war criminals responsible for the holocaust to be tried before an international court ● Countries liberated from German occupation to be allowed to hold free elections to choose the government they wanted ● The big three to join the United Nations , a new organisation which aimed to keep peace after the war ● Eastern Europe to be a Soviet sphere of influence as Stalin was concerned about the future security of the USSR in view of the wartime sufferings it had endured Disagreements and compromises during the Yalta conference ● Stalin wanted the Soviet border to move westwards into Poland and argued that Poland, in turn, could move its border westwards into German territory ○ Both Churchill and Roosevelt were unhappy with this plan ○ Churchill persuaded Roosevelt to accept it as long as the USSR did not interfere in Greece (Stalin accepted) ● Stalin and Churchill clashed over many issues and their relations remained tense. However, they were careful to put up a United front

● Shortly after the Yalta conference, Churchill wrote to Roosevelt expressing his concerns that the USSR might jeopardize the free world ● In may 1945, Churchill ordered his top military commanders to make plans for a possible future war against the USSR The Potsdam conference July- August 1945 Important changes 1 — Change in leadership ● USSR led by Stalin ● United States led by Truman ○ Truman was concerned about the potential threat the USSR posed to the security of the world ○ Adopted a more “get tough” approach and challenged Stalin on the big issues ● Britain led by Clement Attlee 2 — increasing Soviet control ● Soviet troops now controlled most of Eastern Europe ○ The red army had liberated the countries of Eastern Europe from the Germans, but instead of withdrawing his troops, Stalin had left them there ○ By July 1945, Stalin’s troops effectively controlled the Baltic states, Finland, Poland, Czechoslovakia, etc ● Poland remained a source of tension amongst the allies ○ Stalin set up a communist government in Poland, ignoring the wishes of the majority of the poles. ○ Also encouraged communists in the other states to take power ○ Broke agreements made during the Yalta Conference (free elections) 3 — The Manhattan project A further change emerged — since 1941, the United States had been secretly developing a new weapon to end the war (the atomic bomb), which was part of a state funded nuclear development programme called the manhattan project. The USA kept it a secret from the USSR until the Potsdam conference, where Truman informed Stalin that the USA had sucessfully tested the atomic bomb. —> Stalin was not surprised when Truman told him about the bomb, since it had been leaked to him. The USA’s choice to not tell USSR about the bomb earlier further deepened stalin’s suspicions towards the United state’s intentions Major disagreements

Disagreement over Germany Disagreement over Eastern Europe ● Stalin wanted to cripple Germany completely; Truman disagreed as he did not want to repeat the mistake of the treaty of Versailles ● Stalin also wanted compensation from Germany; Truman agreed at first, then changed hi