Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was a foreign strategy in America that aimed to oppose Soviet geopolitical development during the Cold War. As part of the Cold War containment strategy, the United States adopted the Truman Doctrine in 1950. Announcing it to Congress on March 12, 1947, President Harry Truman made it more concrete on July 4, 1948, vowing that he would keep a lid on the communist revolutions in Turkey and Greece. However, Congress provided financial assistance to Greece and Turkey to help their economies and armies grow and prosper. In a broader sense, the Truman Doctrine said that the United States would stand with countries it believed were in danger from Soviet communism (McCauley, 2021, p. 1). America’s foreign policy was established on the Truman Doctrine in 1949 when NATO was formed, and it is still in existence today. Historians generally use Truman’s speech to date the beginning of the Cold War.
Truman’s doctrine significantly shifted American foreign policy away from its traditional position of withdrawing from regional crises not directly related to the United States to one of prospective involvement in faraway wars. New ideology gave legitimacy to American involvement in Cold War conflicts. The United States urged Turkey to fight the Soviets’ claims to naval stations on the Bosphorus. Truman doctrine also ensured that securing the evacuation of Russian forces from Iran was successful. The Truman Doctrine authorized American power to strengthen and modernize fragile nations to prevent a Communist domino effect. “Containment” was U.s. President Truman’s foreign policy said that the United States would help democratic countries threatened by communist influence prevent communism from gaining strength and spreading. It was also through the Truman doctrine that the Greeks could win the war against the communists in 1947.
McCarthy Trials
The Red Scare of the late 1940s and early 1950s in the United States was characterized by McCarthyism. Joseph McCarthy, a Wisconsin senator, started several investigations and proceedings to reveal alleged communist infiltration in the government during this period. The Hollywood blacklist and the House Un-American Activities Committee were also part of the Red Scare. As a result, McCarthyism has become a synonym for accusations of defamation based on baseless claims. Beginning of the 20th century, the notion that the United States needed to be protected against those who wanted to overthrow it was widely accepted. There was a lot of concern about communist infiltration after World War II because of the Soviet Union’s achievements, the Chinese Communist Party’s triumph in 1949 to form the People’s Republic of China, and the United States’ seeming incapacity to stop communism from spreading. During a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, in 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy, who had been elected to the Senate in 1946, stated that America was engaged in a “battle between communistic religious faith and Christianity” and that he held “here in my hand” a list of a large number of State Department communists (“McCarthy and Army-McCarthy hearings,” 2021). Due to the allegations and McCarthy’s pursuit of communist penetration inside the United States government, investigations were launched, and the hearings happened in April 1954.
As a result of McCarthyism, senior American government officials were more nervous. Government personnel, particularly those in the State Department, have been the target of McCarthy’s irrational witch hunts. Mentioning that you were a communist or sympathizer was a political and professional death for anybody. Because no one knew whether they would be named, government officials began to fear the worst. The charges leveled by McCarthy had three immediate ramifications. The first step is to interview former state officials and advisors. They asked past and current members of the Department of State to testify before Congressional committees about the allegations made against them. They were compelled to testify on allegations of allegiance leveled against them. To investigate the actions of its workers, the United States government had to step up its efforts. When one official admitted to being gay, the State Department was forced to exclude any people from their ranks. As a third factor, a report that received strong support from a U.S.U.S. subcommittee led to increased funding for international security.
The U.S. joins Nato
NATO was formed in 1949 by Canada, the United States, and other European countries. NATO was to offer collective defense against the Soviet Union. Following World War II, Europe’s countries strove to re-establish their economies and safeguard their safety. The former needed a significant inflow of assistance to help war-torn landscapes re-establish industry and generate food. At the same time, the latter sought guarantees against a resurgent Germany or Soviet invasions. The United States believed that preventing the spread of communism throughout Europe would be impossible without a Europe that was economically powerful, rearmed, and united (Hallams, 2011, p. 1). Due to this, Secretary of State George Marshall offered an extensive plan of economic assistance for Europe to the United Nations (U.N.).
The United States established NATO in the belief that it would help protect the United States and its allies against Soviet threats. To date, NATO has been America’s first non-Western Hemisphere military alliance. NATO effectively served both classical deterrence and newer conceptions of national resilience. In Eastern Europe, NATO has proved political will and military competence with just a four-battalion investment. To counter a probable Soviet invasion of Western Europe, NATO was created to organize and enhance the Western Partners’ military reaction. As a result of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, NATO’s backing increased significantly. Due to the strong presence of the North Americans presence. NATO was formed to discourage Soviet expansionism, prevent a return to nationalist militarism in Europe, and promote European political unification.
Soviets Launch Sputnik
Sputnik was launched by the U.S.S.R. on October 4, 1957, making it the first artificial satellite ever to orbit the Earth. During its three-month mission, the 85-kilogram sphere of metal orbited the Earth at 29,000 kilometers per hour. Officially, the only thing aboard Sputnik was a limited radio transmitter that produced a beeping noise regularly. Listeners all across the globe might hear this beeping. To begin a new chapter on Cold War tensions, Sputnik 1 was launched in October 1957. Russia’s Soviet space program was created and headed by Sergei Korolev. The Soviet R-7 was the first intercontinental missile to be designed. Korolev also managed the R-7 rocket’s Launch of Sputnik. Sputnik was launched to coincide with the International Meteorological Year, a solar time that the International Committee of Scientific Unions said would be optimal for the launch of satellites to investigate Earth and the entire universe. Russia answered with another launch, as well as the space competition continued. Sputnik’s success profoundly influenced the Cold War and the United States (Launius, n.d.). Concerned that they would be left behind, U.S.U.S. leaders accelerated their space and weaponry projects.
The Sputnik launch signaled the beginning of the space age, and the US-USSR race to the moon led to the establishment of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). After the Soviets’ victories, Americans began to worry that their military had slipped behind in technological advancements. The Sputnik launch contributed to heightening Cold War tensions by escalating the rush to acquire new weapons systems. For many years after Sputnik 1, the Soviet Union was seen as a severe danger to American national security because of its technological advancements, which prompted the United States to spend a lot on development, educational programs, and national security. Researchers were able to test satellite pressure, examine radio wave transmission, and discover how to monitor objects in orbit thanks to the Sputnik mission. For many Americans, Sputnik 1 traveled over the United States on seven separate occasions each day concerned them.
Korean War
From 1950 to 1953, North and South Korea engaged in a conflict known as the Korean War. There were border confrontations and riots in South Korea before North Korea attacked on June 25, 1950, starting the war. With the help of the United Nations, China, and the Soviet Union, the Soviet Union and China helped North Korea. As of July 27, 1953, all hostilities had been declared over. In the immediate aftermath of Stalin’s decision to invade Poland, US authorities assumed Stalin had authorized the attack as the first stage in his plot to conquer the globe. Armistice halted America’s first attempt at “limited conflict” during the Cold War.
Around four million civilians died, were injured, or went missing in action in Korea throughout the Conflict’s three-year duration (1950-1953). All of Korea was devastated by the war, which wiped out much of the country’s economy. To maintain South Korea’s growth in the economy, North Korea became impoverished. However, the Korean War resulted in a new boundary being created between South and North Korea, which granted South Korea some more land and demilitarised the area between the two states (“Korean War, 1950-1953 – the Cold War, 1948-1960 – O.C.R. a – G.C.S.E. history revision – O.C.R. a – B.B.C. bitesize,” n.d.). Approximately 40,000 Americans and multitudes of Koreans and Chinese were killed in the Conflict. A demilitarized zone was established, and an armistice was signed after the Korean War. Investment and consumption were restrained since the Korean War enhanced G.D.P. growth via government expenditure, which boosted G.D.P. growth. At this time, the Federal Reserve’s anti-inflationary policy was implemented. Another way, the Korean Conflict was a significant step in Cold War history because it was a “proxy war” between two superpowers: the United States and the Soviet Union. Other Cold War battles, such as the Vietnam War, used the “limited war” or “proxy war” tactic.
Warsaw Pact created
All seven Soviet satellites in Eastern and Central Europe signed a collective defense agreement known as the Warsaw Pact in 1968. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union tightened its grip over its satellite states. East Germany disbanded the Warsaw Pact in 1990 in anticipation of its reunification with the Western German Democratic Republic. Also, Poland and Czechoslovakia made it clear that they wanted to leave the E.UE.U. The Soviet Union succumbed to the inevitable when confronted with these demonstrations, a weakening economy, and an insecure political climate.
The Warsaw Pact offered a united military leadership and the potential to increase the Soviet grip on the other participant nations via a systematic approach. The Warsaw Pact member states committed to refrain from using or threatening to use violence in international affairs to settle disputes. The treaty outlined the participants’ aspirations, including a commitment to global disarmament and peace (Coker, 1985, p. 2). East European communist governments formed the Warsaw Pact to defend themselves against capitalism’s spread throughout the continent. Deterring European countries from going to war with other states to advance the ideas it backed was a huge success. So long as Russia and its allies were part of the Warsaw Pact, its primary purpose was to keep them all together. Russia would send soldiers into Warsaw Pact nations if there were a chance that a revolution or change would occur.
U-2 Spy Plane shot down by Soviets
On May 1, 1960, an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over Sverdlovsk, U.S.S.R. (now Yekaterinburg). After the Soviet Union shot down a U.S.U.S. U-2 surveillance aircraft over the Russian Empire in 1960, the Paris summit between the U. S., the Soviets, the United Kingdom (and France) could not proceed because of the event. While flying a reconnaissance mission, U.S.U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down and arrested (History.com Editors, 2009). According to Khrushchev, Powers had been lifted to safety and was safe and alive in Moscow at his testimony.
According to the United States, no such mission as Khrushchev mentioned had been authorized, although a U-2 undoubtedly flew above Soviet territory on May 7. For this reason, on May 13, Soviet officials wrote complaint letters to countries like Turkey, Pakistan, and Norway, requesting guarantees that no American aircraft would be permitted to utilize their borders for unlawful reasons. Soviet leader Khrushchev released a statement in Paris on May 16 stating that his country would not participate in summit negotiations unless the U.S.U.S. government instantly ceased all flights over Russian territory, apologized, and punished those involved. Despite President Eisenhower’s promise to halt such flights for the rest of his term, Soviet officials were not satisfied and adjourned the May 17 meeting. As a consequence of the event, a Paris Summit slated to examine the current situation in split Germany, the potential for a weapons control or testing ban pact, and the easing of USSR-US relations were canceled.
U.S.U.S. explodes first H bomb
Atoll in the Pacific, United States detonates world’s first hydrogen weapon – the hydrogen bomb – Short-lived advantages were gained in the nuclear arms race between Russia and United States by conducting the first hydrogen bomb test at Enewetak atoll on November 1, 1952. Teller, Ulam, and other American scientists created the first hydrogen bomb. The United States President felt the H bomb would help the United States reclaim its lead over the Russian Empire (Wolk, 2009). Using the Atomic Energy Commission, Truman ordered the creation of a 1,000-fold more powerful hydrogen bomb.
There is a high probability that the wind will carry radioactive particles hundreds of kilometers before they settle down and contaminate the surrounding land and water. This contamination might harm plants, animals, sea creatures, and people. The first hydrogen weapon, the nuclear weapon, was detonated by the United States on a Tagalog word atoll in the Pacific Ocean. The short-term advantage in atomic weapons competition with the Soviet Union the United States gained from this test. United States was to benefit from the H bomb as it would have the most developed ammunition compared to the U.S.S.R. H bomb was even more substantial than the atomic bomb in Hiroshima.
The Holywood Ten
Filmed on 16mm in the United States in 1950, The Hollywood Ten is a short documentary drama. Each of the Hollywood Ten denounced McCarthyism and the Hollywood blacklisting in a brief statement shown in the film Billy Bob Berry was in charge of the direction of the picture. Dmytryk, one of the Hollywood Ten and former Party member Frank Tuttle, was the first to identify Berry as a communist in 1951 publicly.
Filmmakers avoided the scenario because of the Communist charge and the blacklist. As a result of the probes, nearly 3,000 government employees have had no option but to resign. The HUAC hearings cost the Hollywood Ten a lot of money (Dunbar, 2021). They were charged with contempt of Congress in November 1947. In April 1948, each person was tried on that accusation, found guilty, and sentenced to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. If the government suspected that one was a member of the Hollywood 10, one’s benefits, such as scriptwriting, became of no use.
Vietnam war
The War In Vietnam and the United States’ direct engagement in the fight started in 1954, although the struggle continued for decades. Northern and southern troops fought until the north of Vietnam won the Battle of Dien Bien Phu in May 1954, when Ho’s communist forces seized control in the north. The defeat of the French in Indochina finished almost a decade of French colonial authority. According to the convention signed in July 1954 at the Geneva Conference, north and south Vietnam were divided along the 17th Parallel (Pratt, 2013, p. 2). In addition, the pact stipulated reunification elections on a national scale in 1956.
As a result of this, the United States and North Vietnam’s communist regime went to war with the democratic government of South Vietnam and its most important ally, America. Anxieties were ratcheted up due to the continuous Cold War tensions between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. Moreover, half of the war’s victims were Vietnamese civilians, and over 3 million died. In the United States, opposition to the war was fierce, even after President Nixon accepted the Parisian Peace Agreements and ordered U.S.U.S. soldiers to depart in 1973. Following the Communist takeover of South Vietnam in 1975 and the subsequent unification of Vietnam as the Republic Of Vietnam, hostilities in the nation came to an end.
Afghanistan war
From 2002 to 2008, the United States used a policy of eliminating the Taliban forcefully and reinvigorating the Afghan state’s key institutions. After President Barack Obama’s decision in 2009 to temporarily boost U.S.U.S. force levels in Afghanistan, the third phase, a return to conventional counterinsurgency theory, started in 2008. The more considerable force was sent as part of a plan to safeguard the Afghan civilians from Taliban assaults. The new system was mainly ineffective in achieving its objectives. Afghanistan security forces were unprepared to repel the Taliban, as seen by the persistence of insurgency-related assaults and the high number of civilian deaths (Stewart, 2021, p. 4).
The United States needed to eliminate the Taliban from power in 2001 and eliminate al-bases Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan in the years that followed, even if the 20-year military engagement in Afghanistan may have been a miscalculation. Afghanistan became a piece in what later became known as “The Great Game” between Imperial Russia and the British Empires. Both the United United States and The Soviets attempted to create a foothold in Afghanistan during the Cold War by first investing in infrastructure and then intervening militarily. A civil war erupted when they left the nation, mainly in the late 1980s, which served as a setting for establishing the Taliban.
Star wars
It was the “Star Wars” program, a planned missile defense system designed to shield the United States from the threat of a ballistic nuclear strike. Reagan, a vociferous opponent of the philosophy of mutually assured destruction, disclosed the plan on March 23, 1983, calling it a “death pact.” Many advanced weapon concepts, such as lasers, particle beam weapons, and surface and space-based missile systems, were studied. Numerous sensors, command structures, and elevated computer systems were supposed to handle a scheme consisting of several combat centers and satellite systems spanning the entire world and involved in a brief battle (“Strategic Defense Initiative (S.D.I.),” 2005, p. 1). U.S. missile defense systems have a considerable edge because of decades of thorough study and testing; many of these ideas and technology have been applied to later projects.
During the Cold War, the S.D.I. was a U.S. missile defense program that had a significant impact on U.S.-Soviet relations in the 1980s and is frequently regarded as helping end the Conflict. S.D.I. posed a threat to the Soviet Union’s technological and military superiority. US-USSR relations were strained as a result of this. The Soviets’ top brass charged that the United States was aiming to upset the delicate balance of power in the region. The “Strategic Defense Initiative” proposed ground-based control of satellites. The S.D.I. violated international treaties making Reagan object to it at first.
Fall of the Berlin wall
Five days after a massive demonstration in East Berlin by 500,000 people, the Berlin Wall separating Eastern Germany from Western Germany came tumbling down on November 9, 1989. Protesters in East Germany had become more agitated, so East German officials decided to ease the country’s boundaries. One of the most significant events of the 20th century occurred when the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. Political changes inside the Soviet Union, increasing pressure from Eastern Europeans, and, in the end, a muddle over an East German instruction to open the border all contributed to this development.
Russia withdrew its soldiers from formerly East Germany, but NATO allies such as the United Kingdom and France stayed in the West. Francis Fukuyama, a political scientist and author of “An End to History,” famously declared the collapse of the Berlin Wall to be a symbolic climax of the Cold War in 1997. Precisely 11 months after the Berlin Wall came down, East and West Germany have reunited as one nation once again (“Milestones: 1953–1960,” n.d.). The Berlin Wall ultimately served as a physical barrier between the West and the Soviet Union, halted the flow of refugees from the Communist bloc, and became a symbol of the Cold War across Europe. The wall, which separated families and restricted travel, was swiftly denounced by the United States.
The collapse of the Soviet Union
As of January 1, 1991, the Soviet Union was the world’s biggest nation, spanning approximately one-sixth of the planet’s land area. Moreover, 290 million people in the country with more than 100 different ethnicities living there. With more than dozens of thousands of nuclear weapons, the Soviet Union could assert its dominance over eastern Europe via the Warsaw Pact. Many causes were at play in the fall of the Soviet Union, including both internal and foreign ones (“Milestones: 1989–1992,” n.d.).
As a result of Gorbachev’s decision to remove the Soviet burden on Eastern Europe, in November 1989, the Berlin Wall fell. Violent crime, societal upheavals, and cultural reorientation. The Soviet Union’s demise impacted Eastern European economies and trade links. It sparked a wave of turmoil throughout the region and increased crime and corruption inside the Russian government. Communism in Eastern Europe started to fade away. Certain long-standing ethnic disputes occurred when the iron grip of the erstwhile Soviet state was dismantled. Russia has seen fast economic growth due to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the subsequent independence of the old Soviet nations. all ex-Soviet countries have reintegrated into the Commonwealth of Nations. During Russia’s economic downturn, inflation and economic decline occurred.
References
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Dunbar, D. L. (2021, October 21). The Hollywood ten: The men who refused to name names. The Hollywood Reporter. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/hollywood-ten-men-who-refused-839762/
Hallams, E. (2011). North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The Encyclopedia of War. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444338232.wbeow454
History.com Editors. (2009, November 9). U-2 spy incident. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/u2-spy-incident
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McCauley, M. (2021). The Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan. Origins of the Cold War 1941–1949, 159-162. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003015338-13
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Stewart, E. (2021). The history of U.S.U.S. intervention in Afghanistan, from the Cold War to 9/11. https://www.vox.com/world/22634008/us-troops-afghanistan-cold-war-bush-bin-laden
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