Introduction
The Cold War became a dominant issue in the field of international relations for almost half of the twentieth century, that is, from 1945 to 1991 (Painter 1). It was characterized by a high degree of tension between the Soviet Union and the United States; the conflict and competition in the Third World, the world’s division into economic spheres; the polarization of international and domestic politics; and a dangerous and costly arms race.
Although historians are quite divided on what or who caused the Cold War – on one hand, they say the Soviets caused it and on the other, they say the Americans did – this paper takes the position that both the Soviets and the Americans were responsible for the Cold War.
Although the Soviets and the Americans were allies during the Second World War, this alliance broke down when the war was over mainly due to the fact that both countries were just too different from each other. With the U.S.A. being a capitalist country and the Soviet Union being a communist country, it became a “war” between capitalism and communism.
Causes of the Cold War
The Cold War officially began with the U.S. dropping atomic bombs in Japan (Leffler and Painter 58). Some historians claimed that the United States dropped the atomic bombs because they wanted to put an end to the conflict before the Soviet Union had a chance to declare war on Japan and “lay claim to the concessions [. . .] that Roosevelt had promised Stalin at the Yalta Conference in February 1945” (Leffler and Painter 58). On the other hand, some historians argued that Japan would have surrendered on their own even if only they were allowed to retain their emperor. The U.S. was also said to have dropped the atomic bombs in an effort to make the Soviets loosen their grip on Eastern European policies and allow for free trade and free elections. In addition, it was said that the invention of the atomic bomb got U.S. officials thinking about reconstructing Germany and controlling its future strength with the use of the atomic bomb.
Other historians, however, claimed that the U.S. could not have known that Japan was about to surrender and that the atomic bombs were dropped to save American lives.
It should be noted, however, that although the dropping of the atomic bombs marked the official start of the Cold War, tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union have started even before 1945, and this was mostly due to their differences in their ideologies. For example, the U.S., along with other capitalist powers, supported the Whites in the Russian Civil War and began to recognize the Soviet Union only in 1933 (Dobson and Marsh 20). Relations improved as the U.S. began to recognize the Soviet Union, but relations again deteriorated because of Joseph Stalin’s show trials and purges of the 1930s, “the Nazi-Soviet pact of 1939, and the subsequent partitioning of parts of Europe” (Dobson and Marsh 20). The U.S. acknowledged the Soviet Union’s great loss in terms of their human, material, and physical resources and offered the Soviets a Lend-Lease aid for which the Soviets were thankful. Despite this, however, their relations remained shrouded in suspicions and disputes. The Soviets feared that the Americans would make peace with Hitler, which would enable the Germans to continue the war on the eastern front. Even when this did not happen, the Soviets continued to suspect that the U.S. intentionally delayed D. Day to let the Red Army handle most of the battle against Wehrmact on their own. On the other hand, the Americans also had suspicions about the Katyn massacre where much of the Polish officer class was slaughtered – now determined as a Soviet instead of a Nazi war crime – and about how the Red Army paused before they entered Warsaw, which allowed the Nazis to eliminate the pro-Western Polish Home Army and level the Ghetto. In addition, both superpowers had recurring suspicions about each other even after the Second World War.
On the economic aspect, three factors caused the embitterment of relations between the Soviets and the American. One was the Soviets’ disappointment over the cessation of the Lend-Lease aid after victory was obtained in Europe. Although it was a requirement of the American law, the Soviets saw it as a prelude to political concessions that the US. would make in exchange for the aid – a suspicion that later proved to be true. Another factor was that the U.S. had become an economic giant in the war, and in efforts to maintain such status, the U.S. proposed to internationalize New Deal reforms in order to make capitalism acceptable and its performance more accountable and stable through the exercise of American management via the IMF and the GATT. The Soviets, however, did not approve of such proposal and refused to participate in the endeavor. A third economic factor was that Germany’s economy had to be revived to enable the economic reconstruction and the promotion of self-help in Europe. The Soviets, however, saw this as a threat since majority of Germany was under the control of the U.S. and they thought it unacceptable for the U.S. to provide resources to clothe, house, and feed the German people.
Indeed, the defeat of Japan and Germany again made the great differences between Western capitalism and Soviet communism prominent. The differences in their ideologies concerning the treatment of Soviet-liberated Europe and the various economic issues resurfaced. In addition, there was controversy about freedom and democracy where the Americans wanted democracy to be implemented in Europe while the Soviets wanted communism to prevail.
Impact of the Cold War
The Cold War influenced the foreign policies of both the Soviet Union and the United States (Painter 1). It also had a major effect on these countries’ societies, as well as on their military, economic, and political institutions. In addition, it became a way for the United States to assume and assert global leadership as it was able to justify its projection of influence and power all over the world. On the other hand, this provided the Soviet Union, particularly its dictator Joseph Stalin, with an external enemy, which justified his “repressive internal regime,” (Painter 1), legitimized an unrepresentative government, and enabled him to maintain control over the Soviet Union’s communist party.
It should be noted, however, that the U.S. and the Soviet Union were not the only countries affected by the Cold War. It also caused the division of Europe and even the division of Germany. On the other hand, it brought about the reintegration and reconstruction of Japan, Italy, and Germany after their defeat in the Second World War.
As well, the Third World countries were greatly affected as the Cold War overlapped with these countries’ national liberation and decolonization. In particular, the Cold War caused the division of Korea and Vietnam, in turn leading to costly wars in these countries. It should also be noted that majority of the casualties incurred between the years 1945 and 1990 were from the many wars that occurred in Third World countries during the time. Moreover, majority of the crises that could potentially lead to a nuclear war occurred in these countries.
Conclusion
It is evident that the Cold War was mainly caused by the differences in ideologies between the Soviet Union and the United States, with the Soviet Union inclining towards socialism or communism and the United States inclining towards capitalism or democracy. These ideologies directed both countries’ actions in the political and economic spheres, and these caused the conflicts and tensions between them.
It was also evident how both countries had made mistakes along the way and how they had both provoked each other in one way or another. As such, it reasonable to conclude that no single party was solely responsible for the Cold War.
However, with the Cold War seeing its end upon the new regime of Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985 and the collapse of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe (Phillips 45-57), it can be said that democracy prevailed in the end, which implied that in the end, people still preferred to have their freedom. This also implied that as a superpower, the United States would always be willing and ready to defend democracy, not only for itself but for the rest of the world as well, which can give all of us the assurance and peace of mind that democracy and freedom will be protected and guarded as tightly as possible.
Works Cited
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Francis, 6 Sept. 2006. Print.
This book provides a concise introduction to U.S. foreign policy after the Second World War. It explores questions such as who makes the policy, why the policy is made, in what kind of international environment it is made, and what kinds of democratic controls are in place. This book also provides an extensive analysis of the Cold War and the period prior to 2001, as well as the many crucial issues involved.
Although this book was mainly about the U.S. foreign policy, it provided a thorough account of the events that surrounded the Cold War, both before and after it started. The authors made sure to cite both the Americans’ and the Soviets’ sides, which made the information unbiased, in turn making this book a good and credible reference for this paper.
Leffler, Melvyn P. and Painter, David S. Origins of the Cold War: An International History.
2nd ed. New York, NY: Routledge, 13 Jun. 2005. Print.
This book contains a compilation of international articles that provides a comprehensive and fresh analysis of the Cold War from the international system’s perspective. It discusses the interactions between national liberation and decolonization; patterns of international trade and economic reform; social reconstruction and ideology; strategy and technology; and threat perception and geopolitics. This book also provides information on the manners by which the Cold War spread from Europe to Asia and the reasons for such.
Although the information provided by this book is much more in-depth than is needed for the completion of this paper, it is a good and credible reference for this paper. Not only does it provide the reader with the obvious reasons for the Cold War but takes the reader to the behind-the-scenes occurrences and provides a more thorough discussion of the underlying causes that led to the Cold War.
Painter, David S. The Cold War: An International History. New York, NY: Routledge, 26 Jul.
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In this book, the author studies the origins and persistence of the Cold War based on the interaction of national policies and politics with international systemic factors. He explores the events that surrounded the Cold War in all parts of the world. He discusses his findings from an international perspective rather than from a national or binational perspective, especially since the Cold War encompassed much more than the relations between the United States and the Soviet Union.
Although this book does not provide the complete details of the events that caused and resulted from the Cold War, it does provide a different take on the subject by focusing on the various international factors involved in the event. This enables the reader to better understand the kind of impact that the Cold War had on the rest of the world and not just on the United States and the Soviet Union.
Phillips, Steve. The Cold War: Conflict in Europe and Asia. United Kingdom: Heinmann, 1 Jul.
2001. Print.
This book provides general and basic information about the Cold War. It provides information about the events that occurred during the Cold War in all parts of the world. It also provides an analysis and interpretation of the events that led to the Cold War.
Although the information provided in this book is quite brief and general in nature, it still serves as a good reference for students who are only beginning to learn about the Cold War. Wit it’s outline-like format and straightforward and simplistic text, it presents information in a manner that can be easily understood by students. For this reason, it serves as a good and credible reference for this paper, given the scope and purpose of this paper.
