Origins Of The Cold War
29 October 2004 (Lecture
#27)
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1)
Escalation up to 1962
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More
cautious approach after the Cuban Missile Crisis
Cold War Origins in WWII
- Soviets knew they had
lost more men and killed more Germans than other Allies
- Stalin’s primary
concern was security (through buffer stages)
- US wanted world
stability and peace
- Yalta Conference – US
and UK let Soviets to continue to occupy Poland
- Truman becomes
president – he has little trusts for foreigners and is hard-liner towards
the Soviets
- Potsdam – meet to
resolve issues but postponed (US and Soviets quarrel)
Mutual Suspicions between the US and Soviets
- The Marshall Plan – US
sought to impart stability to the spread of communism
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Economic
vitality essential to democracy
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Gives
money to European countries to help them rebuild
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Very
popular – Soviets don’t accept (they don’t like the US; hints it is gaining
power) and force weak Eastern European countries to decline the aid (they want
it)
- Soviets blockade Berlin
and the US airlift supplies in – make the Soviets appear evil
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Leads
to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Conclusions
- Mutual distrust led to
the worst perceptions
- Economic insecurity
leads people to pursue radical solutions