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Truman responsible for cold war
To what extent can truman be blame for the cold war
Truman responsible for cold war
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When discussing the Cold War, there are two questions that never fail to come up: When did it start? And, when did it end? While the latter is more difficult to pinpoint, there is a clear starting point for the Cold War. Most arguments for the beginning are in fact post WWII events and nothing more. As the Cold War progressed there is much blame to go around, but it started with President Truman. With fear of the United States falling back into the Depression, President Truman used post WWII fallout to justify the Soviets as and enemy and in turn start the Cold War. By looking at the progression of events, and Truman’s actions, it cannot be clearer that he manipulated his citizens to march forward into a war that would last for many years to come.
The end of WWII certainly left more questions to be answered than ones resolved, but the two key questions for the United States were: What happens with Europe now? And, what do we do with our war dependent economy? From 1945 to the very start of the 1950s, the World saw a lot of change because of the destruction left behind. As WWII unravels many events occur in this five-year span, and a lot of them are pointed to as the start of the Cold War depending on the source. The biggest issue with most of the theories is the denial that WWII had to have post war events to truly come to an end. In order for a war of such magnitude to really be over it takes time to tie up loose ends. Some argue that the Yalta Conference starts the Cold War this is untrue. Given that the Big Three were the leaders of the World at this point, there was going to be tension but they still remained allies. Europe was decimated, and naturally these three were supposed to rebuild it. The Soviet Union and the United ...
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Foreign and domestic policies during the Cold War lead to both the separation of world powers and the fear of political and social systems throughout the world. After World War 2 ended, tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union heightened. The agreements made at the Yalta Conference between Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt, were not being followed by the Soviets. The Soviet Union kept the land they reconquered in Eastern Europe and did not enforce a democratic government in those countries, as they promised. Instead, the Soviet Union decided to continue spreading communism in their reconquered lands.
“Was Truman Responsible for the Cold War”, well, according to author Arnold A. Offner, his simplistic answer is an obvious “yes.” “Taking Sides” is a controversial aspect of the author’s interpretation for justifying his position and perception of “Truman’s” actions. This political approach is situated around the “Cold War” era in which the author scrutinizes, delineates, and ridicules his opponents by claiming “I have an ace in the hole and one showing” (SoRelle 313). Both authors provide the readers with intuitive perceptions for their argumentative approaches in justifying whether or not “Truman” contributed to the onset of the “Cold War.” Thus far, it would be hard-pressed to blame one single individual, President or not, for the “Cold War” initiation/s. Information presented show the implications centered on the issues leading up to the Cold War”, presents different ideologies of two Presidents involving policy making, and a national relationship strained by uncooperative governments. However, evidence that is presented may indicate otherwise as Joseph Stalin provides adequate counter claims for discrediting the “simplicity” of “yes”.
President Harry Truman came into office right at the end of World War II, after the death of President Franklin Roosevelt. Almost immediately after becoming president, Truman learned of the Manhattan Project, and had to decide whether or not to use the atomic bomb. With the advice of James Byrnes, Secretary of State, Truman decided to drop two atomic bombs on Japan, in part to demonstrate America’s power to the world and gain a political advantage in Europe (Offner 294). After World War II ended, there were negotiations about Germany, and it was decided that Germany would be split into two halves; the western half would be controlled by the United States and its allies, while the eastern half would be controlled by the Soviet Union. This situation led to increased tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union because of the two nations’ different political and economic systems. The Soviet Union began to view the United States as a threat to communism, and the United States began to view the Soviet Union as a threat to democracy. On March 12, 1947, Truman gave a speech in which he argued that the United States should support nations trying to resist Soviet imperialism. Truman and his advisors created a foreign policy that consisted of giving reconstruction aid to Europe, and preventing Russian expansionism. These foreign policy decisions, as well as his involvement in the usage of the atomic bomb, raises the question of whether or not the Cold War can be blamed on Truman.
The Cold War was a war fought from 1945 to 1990. The war did not end until the Berlin Wall was destroyed. The Berlin Wall was essentially a wall that divided Germany into two parts : the East and the West. The United States Entered the war because they were not in favor for Russia's communist beliefs. Russia wanted to spread its communism throughout Asia and the western countries of Europe. Some could say that the wra was a success because communism was not spread at the end the Soviet Union lost the war. After the war was ended Germany became one whole country again. For the United States the war was successful because communism did not spread to countries that were of interest to the United States. Countries like Japan, Mexico, and some countries from the middle east were being looked at by the American government and they did not want communism to spread. Because the Soviet Union lost it broke up into very small republicans and agreed with the terms of the war. The war was a success because of all these reasons. In the eyes of the Soviets the war was not a success. The war was a way to spread it’s belief and to hopefully gain more territory. During the war the making of the Berlin Wall was a success but it wasn't until 1989 when the wall was broken down. All in all the war was a
In conclusion the Yalta and Potsdam conferences of 1945 had been a pinnacle point of rebuilding Europe but also in causing the spread of communism through out Eastern Europe namely Poland by Roosevelt desperate to defeat the Japanese out of pride giving into the demands of the soviets in exchange for their involvement which would never materialize due to President Truman (the atomic bomb) and the results of the first conference. This ultimately would lead to tensions between the two ideologies. The ideological tension being the difference in communism and capitalism that led to the Cold War seemed inevitable for the two superpowers to some due to already existing tensions between them however the tensions that sparked the Cold
Just when you think the war is over, and there will be peace between countries, the aftermath of the war begins. The Cold War began after World War II in Europe. The conflict between the United States and their allies (capitalist) and the Soviet Union and their allies (communist). The Cold War was political and military tension that remained even after the war was over. The power struggle between capitalism and communism was fierce with each trying influence other countries. Fearing communist invasion, the United States felt the need to keep communism under control and within limits. The United States began their battle for containment. There are three prime examples of how the United
The end of World War II presented an opportunity for Winston Churchill to regain some of the power and influence that the Imperialistic British Empire once possessed. Churchill took advantage of the trust and respect that the American public and President Truman shared about his character. He saw Truman's lack of political experience as an opportunity to restore British imperial authority. Winston Churchill tainted Harry Truman's beliefs and preservations about Russia, because his personal agenda and imperial policy where vital to the supremacy of the British Empire. Churchill manipulated Truman and the American public. He caused them to believe that Russia was a legitimate threat to the free world, thus he created the origins of the Cold War.
War is an idea that has existed since the dawn of humanity, and with every war there are goals and motives, the Cold War is no different. The turmoil of the first World War in set the global stage for the future of relations between the United States, Russia, Britain and other countries. As the Russian civil war grew fiercer, allied forces, including U.S. forces, laid foot on Russian soil, at which point things took a turn for the worst. The Cold War was a war of competition, in every sense of the word; and although both the United States and the Soviet Union were teetering-tottering on the brink of war for many years after the first World War, ultimately the United States is to blame for initiation of the Cold War, as the United States adjusted
The Cold War began in 1946, shortly after WWII, and ended more than four decades later in 1991. It began with the shifting struggle for power and prestige between the Western hemisphere and the Soviet Union. The U.S. and President Harry Truman fear of communist attack and the Soviet Union need for a secure western border led to America’s effort in providing economic stability and security to nations of the Western hemisphere. In addition, President Truman began his “Get Tough” policy that encouraged the development of nuclear weapons for America to be securely defensive and well armed. The document, “Secretary of Commerce Henry A. Wallace Questions the “Get Tough” Policy” written by Secretary Wallace described America’s actions, “the effort to secure air base spread over half the globe from which the other half of the globe can be bombed,” which he felt America during the Cold War went “far beyond the requirements of defense.”Although, President Truman was determined to resist aggression, moreover, stop the spread of communism and Soviet power, the document was written to make the public and particularly President Truman realize that he himself used aggressive diplomacy that failed to notice the Soviet Union purpose and policy, which if he did understood, might have made better approaches in achieving his goals.
President Harry S. Truman had a presidency with many world conflicts and hard decisions. Such as dropping two atomic bombs on the Japanese, the beginning of the Cold War, the Korean War and more. President Truman had a very active role in many of the years following World War Two. In the months following after Roosevelt's death, as the new President, Truman had to make a difficult decision on whether not to drop the atomic bombs on Japan.
The effect the Cold War had on the world is astounding. Good things came out of the Cold War, as well as bad things. Economic breakdowns, amazing technological advances (Such as during the Arms Race), political rewiring, proxy wars, millions of lives lost, and a higher interest in security than ever are just a few of the ways countries have been affected. The legacies of the Cold War continue to shape and influence our lives today, and it’s important to not only understand the significance of this war-that wasn’t really a war, hence “Cold War”- but to learn about what caused it, so that we can try our best not to repeat it again in the future. There isn’t a simple cause, or just one reason, because so many events piled up onto one another to cause the clash. Let’s take a step back, and look at the background events going on that ultimately led to a period that changed the world.
The beginnings of the Cold War is difficult to make out, due to the fact that after all, the Cold War is a cumulation of many previous misgivings on both communist (USSR) and the democratic nations of the West (primarily the USA) that can be traced all the way back to the 1918-1920 Bolshevik revolution. However, after a period of co-operation during WWII, the friction between the East and the West intensified which ultimately led to the Cold War. To mark a specific event as the start of the Cold War, the event must mean the severing of all aspects of co-operation between the East and the West, official hostility of both countries as well as a clear demarcation of Europe being sliced into two distinct, hostile blocs of Communism and Democracy. These three given factors all fulfil some of the mentioned scopes, but none fully
The Cold War was a political and military tension between the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II until the approximate date of 1985. The period of this tension was commonly termed as “Cold” because there was no direct contact fighting between the two sides. The United States government was in name of stopping communist expansionism. The Cold War influenced on many aspects of American society culturally, politically, and economically. During this time period, the citizens of the United States were already paranoid with the facts that they
Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, "Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signified, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold but not clothed." There was never a war that this idea can be more correct applied to than the Cold War. According to noted author and Cold War historian Walter Lippman, the Cold War can be defined as a state of tension between states, which behave with great distrust and hostility towards each other, but do not resort to violence. The Cold War encompasses a period from the end of the Second World War (WWII), in 1945, to the fall of the Soviet Union, in 1989. It also encompassed the Korean and Vietnam Wars and other armed conflicts in the Middle East and Africa, that, essentially, were not wars for people but instead for territories and ideologies. "Nevertheless, like its predecessors, the Cold War has been a worldwide power contest in which one expanding power has threatened to make itself predominant, and in which other powers have banded together in a defensive coalition to frustrate it---as was the case before 1815, as was the case in 1914-1918 as was the case from 1939-1945" (Halle 9). From this power contest, the Cold War erupted.
By another account, the Cold War began in 1917 with the Bolshevik Revolution, and ended in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, having been a conflict between Bolshevism and Democracy. The Cold War got its name because both sides were afraid of fighting each other in such a “hot war”, nuclear weapons might destroy everything. So, instead, they fought each other indirectly. They played havoc with conflicts in different parts of the world. They used words as weapons.