Following World War II, the Soviet Union refused to evacuate Eastern Europe. Between 1946 and 1989, the Soviets and western bloc engaged in a Cold War for global supremacy. The first eight years of the conflict set the table for the remainder of the period and informed policy makers for each side. In the end, the United States adopted a policy of containment designed to blunt Soviet expansion in the hopes that social, cultural, and economic forces would rip the empire apart.
Josef Stalin agreed to free Eastern Europe at World War II’s conclusion. Franklin Roosevelt accepted Stalin at his word, but Winston Churchill protested the Soviet military presence. He knew Stalin was little better than Hitler and just as trustworthy. However, the political and military situation made Stalin’s removal impossible.
It became evident early on that Stalin refused to leave Eastern Europe. His armies essentially annexed Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and East Germany. Stalin established Soviet puppet regimes with command economies and secret police forces to quell opposition. In England, Churchill watched with unease. He worried that Stalin would attempt to fulfill communist doctrine and spread the Russian Revolution by military force.
The United States also watched events with unease. The Allies had just defeated Hitler and worried that Stalin may plunge the world into another war. In February 1946, the Deputy Chief to the U.S. Mission in Moscow, George Kennan, wrote “the Long Telegram” analyzing Soviet behavior and suggesting a course of action. Kennan explained the Russians had always been expansionist, except when confronted with strength. He suggested an aggressive policy to contain the communist threat would halt Soviet expansion. Over time, the containment would allow ethic diversity and economic flaws to rip the empire apart from the inside.
While Kennan outlined strategy, Churchill moved to sound the alarm. While delivering a speech in Fulton, Missouri, he warned “from Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic,” an iron curtain had befallen the continent. He called for a western alliance to confront the Soviets before Stalin attacked the west. While some accused Churchill of alarmism, there is some evidence to suggest Stalin planned to launch World War III on the eve of his death.
President Harry Truman needed little prodding from Churchill. He recognized Stalin as a mass murderer and sociopath. The president officially adopted Kennan’s containment policy and expanded it. He announced the Truman Doctrine in 1947. Under his direction, the United States pledged aid to those nations confronted by communist threats. The U.S. quickly sent aid to Greece and Turkey. The aid countered Soviet efforts to influence the Greek Civil War and bully the Turks into surrendering Black Sea territory.
American success in Greece and Turkey led Truman to expand his efforts. The president decided to create a large aid package for Western Europe for reconstruction efforts. He hoped an improved European economy would negate communist influence. The administration dubbed it the Marshall Plan after popular war hero George Marshall. This made it difficult for congress to deny the aid. The U.S. spent $13 billion revitalizing Europe. By 1951, Western European economies had recovered and boomed. The communist threat subsided.
American interference angered Stalin. He decided to force the issue in Berlin. Since World War II, the city had been split into occupation zones. Likewise, the Allies split Germany into zones. Berlin fell in the Soviet sphere. Stalin cut off western access to Berlin hoping to starve the people into submission. Once complete, he would unify Berlin under the Soviet banner.
President Truman responded decisively to Stalin’s provocation. Staying true to containment, he began a massive airlift of supplies to the city. The airlift lasted over a year and represented the first major crisis between the two powers. From June 24, 1948 to May 12, 1949, the U.S., Canada, Britain, France, and other allies shipped food, supplies, and medicine to the people. Confronted with a determined opponent, Stalin backed down and reopened the city to trains and trucks.
Soviet aggression and obstinacy worried the Allies. In response, they formed a defensive alliance to confront Stalin. Twelve nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) charter in April 1949. The alliance promised to defend one another in the event of an attack. An attack on one nation represented an attack on all. The alliance may have made Stalin even more paranoid. In response, he formed the Warsaw Pact to defend his empire against western aggression.
As the Americans and Soviets squared off in Europe, the communists captured China. Since few paid attention, the collapse of the Nationalist government shocked the west. Americans asked, “Who lost China?” The implication was Truman, but in reality, the corrupt Nationalist regime lost the civil war. China’s conversion to communism heartened Stalin and confounded the west.
The U.S. and Soviets did not engage militarily, but the Americans did fight a war against China. In 1950, North Korea invaded their southern neighbors hoping to unify the peninsula. President Truman responded with military force. The Chinese worried about American intentions as MacArthur routed North Korea and invaded communist territory. China counterattacked the Americans creating a three-year stalemate. By 1953, the war sapped Harry Truman’s political capital and America wanted out. World War II’s ultimate hero delivered. President Eisenhower ended the Korean War and ushered in a new phase of the Cold War.
Josef Stalin created the conditions for a Cold War. His personality and refusal to leave Eastern Europe led to a confrontation with the west. The United States decided to counter communist moves and contain the enemy. By 1953, containment appeared a success in Europe, but a hot war in Asia called the limits of American power into question.
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