final Forgien policy essay (1)

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Tindall 1 Bailey Tindall Foreign Policy 3144 10/1/23 What were the causes of the Cold War and which side (the US or the Soviet Union) is most responsible for it? In order to properly start us out, we must cover the events that occurred on the dates of August 6th and 9th, 1945. The United States deployed two atomic bombs onto the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in an endeavor to bring about the conclusion of the Pacific conflict, thus circumventing the necessity of a costly military invasion of Japan. The atomic weapon known as "Little Boy," which was designed in the shape of a uranium gun, was detonated above the city of Hiroshima. President Truman issued a plea for surrender, however, Emperor Hirohito disregarded this appeal. Consequently, the United States deployed the “Fat Man” bomb, an implosion-type nuclear weapon containing plutonium, over the city of Nagasaki. The United States of America and the Soviet Union worked together to defeat Nazi Germany during the Second World War, and as part of that endeavor, they came to an agreement to form an alliance. Nevertheless, it is essential to keep in mind that throughout this time period, their working together was predominately motivated by their mutual antagonism to a

Tindall 2 common foe, rather than by actual cooperation between the two of them. Both of the superpowers, throughout the last phases of the war, made efforts to expand their respective spheres of influence in Europe and Asia, which led to power clashes within the regions that were left over after the war. The utilization of two nuclear bombs and the subsequent declaration of war by the Soviet Union against Japan ultimately influenced Emperor Hirohito to capitulate to the Allied forces, thereby culminating World War II. The utilization of atomic weapons not only showcased America's scientific dominance but also exacerbated the strained relations with the Soviet Union, ultimately contributing to the ignition of the Cold War. The Cold War was a period of high tension between the United States of America and the Soviet Union that lasted for half a century but did not immediately culminate in an armed conflict between the two countries. Going back to the ending of World War II, the Soviet Union and the Western Allies jointly assumed governance over Germany. Berlin served as the capital city of the Soviet Union, wherein it was subject to shared governance between the USSR and the Western countries, despite its geographical placement within the Eastern Soviet zone. In

Tindall 3 June 1948, when all surface traffic to West Berlin was effectively severed, the Soviet Union began a concerted effort to assert its authority over the entirety of the city. The Berlin Blockade was a political and military campaign that was undertaken by the Soviet Union against Berlin during the years 1948 and 1949. It took place throughout this time as a strategic maneuver in reaction, Western nations organized the Berlin Airlift as part of their response. These events, which took place in the early years of the Cold War, served as key crises that thrust the division of Europe into the spotlight on a global scale. As a reaction, the United States initiated a regular air transportation operation to deliver essential provisions and sustenance to the besieged urban area. The airlift operations persisted until September of 1949. Throughout the course of the airlift operation, the western allied nations successfully airlifted a total of 2.3 million tons of essential supplies and fuel to the city of West Berlin. In the aftermath of World War II, the year 1943, the Soviet Union initiated research efforts towards the establishment of an indigenous atomic weapon program. The USSR swiftly embarked on the development of its own nuclear weapon, facilitated by the acquisition

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Tindall 4 of intelligence and blueprints obtained by Soviet agents from the Manhattan Project. Winston Churchill's speech from 1946, which is popularly referred to as the "Iron Curtain speech," called attention to the geopolitical segmentation of Europe into different Eastern and Western areas of influence. The speech was commonly known as the "Iron Curtain speech." Churchill placed a significant amount of emphasis on the active role that the Soviet Union played in establishing this separation. During the time period of the Cold War, the divide and enmity that came to be known as "Iron Curtain" found a symbol in the form of the Iron Curtain. In August 1949, the Soviet Union conducted a successful test of a 20-kiloton bomb, surpassing the anticipated timeline of the United States. This event marked the initiation of the nuclear arms race between the two global superpowers. Tensions that were already present were amplified as a result of the increased availability of instruments of mass destruction, which also intensified anxieties regarding the possibility of a disastrous conflict. On November 1, 1952, at 7:15 a.m, the United States conducted its inaugural test of a thermonuclear device, commonly known as a hydrogen bomb. This event took place on the island of Elugelab,

Tindall 5 situated within the Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands, which is located approximately 3,000 miles west of Hawaii. The explosive device, identified as "Ivy Mike", was activated by remote means at a distance of around thirty miles. The subsequent fireball expanded vertically to a magnitude of 120,000 feet and horizontally encompassed an area of 3 kilometers. After the detonation, a mushroom cloud with a diameter spanning 100 miles emerged. The explosion yielded little over 10 megatons, making it nearly 700 times more potent than the atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima. The resulting crater from the destruction of Elugelab exhibited dimensions exceeding one mile in width and a depth surpassing 160 feet. You have to remember the United States of America stood for democracy, capitalism, and individual liberty, while the Soviet Union was a symbol of communism, state control, and communal ownership. The massive amount of mistrust and competition were driven by these divergent perspectives on the world. In my opinion the fact that the Soviet Union was pushing their communistic views and policies upon western nations, must have expected some sort of retaliation and aggravation.

Tindall 6 The U.S was mainly responsible for the intelligent establishment of a direct communication channel between the United States and the Soviet Union, which was motivated by the Cuban Missile Crisis. This measure aimed to facilitate swift and direct contact during critical scenarios that may potentially jeopardize the security of either nation, such as the inadvertent deployment of nuclear weapons. The communication link, sometimes known as the "Red Phone," was in fact a tele-typewriter that facilitated the transmission of textual messages rather than voice contact. The implementation of the "Hot Line" facilitated expedited and direct communication between the United States and the Soviet Union, therefore mitigating the likelihood of misinterpretations and enhancing mutual understanding. The two superpowers had the same goal of expanding their spheres of influence and philosophies across the world, but we all know that it isn't possible for them to do so simultaneously. The United States of America was forced to battle with the spread of communism and attempted many times to curb the spread and at the same time the Soviet Union aggressively worked just as hard to support communist parties and regimes across Eastern Europe and Asia.

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Tindall 7 In an effort to stop the spread of communism, the United States utilized the Truman Doctrine which is when President Harry S. Truman established that the United States would provide political, military and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from external or internal authoritarian force s . As well as the Marshall Plan, which provided markets for American goods, created reliable trading partners, and supported the development of stable democratic governments in Western Europe. The Soviet Union used harsh methods to stifle dissent not only within its own borders but also in the nations that it controlled as satellites in Eastern Europe. This behavior revealed a disregard for human rights and was a contributing factor in the development of worldwide condemnation and discontent. The Soviet Union was actively involved in supplying help for a wide variety of proxy wars and insurgencies that were taking place all over the world. This included substantial involvements in wars such as the Korean War and the Vietnam War, as well as conflicts that were taking place in Africa and Latin America. The existence of indirect engagement led to the formation of supplementary elements that contributed to stress and instability, which was a result of the presence of indirect engagement. There was a strong presence of mutual

Tindall 8 distrust and suspicion between the superpowers, as well as among the superpowers themselves, which constituted significant variables. The lack of clear and effective communication led to the development of an environment that was marked by uncertainty and apprehension. As a result of the fact that both parties share responsibility for the underlying problem as well as its subsequent effects, it still isn’t difficult to single out a culprit to blame. The Soviet Union routinely broke the terms of the agreements that were made both during and after World War II. For example, it did not accept the accords reached at Yalta and Potsdam, which were intended to establish and sustain the political and territorial arrangements in Europe following the end of World War II, which I will go into more detail about later. The Soviet Union's occupation of Eastern Europe and the subsequent establishment of satellite republics ran counter to the concepts of cooperation and trust that had been developed as a result of these negotiations. For a substantial amount of time, the Soviet Union showed reluctance in joining the United Nations. This posture, in my opinion, served as a trigger for the growing frustration of the United States, which was a scenario that could have potentially been averted.

Tindall 9 In addition, as I was saying it is my belief that the enormous repercussions that resulted from Stalin's reluctance to stick to the agreements established at the Yalta and Potsdam conferences can be traced back to a major cause of the Cold War. The meeting of nations at Yalta, which took place in February 1945, was attended by the heads of state of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union. During the course of the discussion, everyone came to an agreement that liberated nations should be guaranteed the right to hold free and fair elections, which would provide those nations the independence to select the ruling authority of their choosing. Instead of adhering to the aforementioned agreement, the Soviet Union opted to manipulate the electoral processes in Poland and other nations, installing communist regimes on a number of European states. From a Western point of view, this was viewed as an aggressive policy for territorial expansion and as a way to build buffer zones to protect the Soviet Union from Western powers. The European region is currently experiencing heightened tension as a direct result of this event. Through the implementation of the Berlin blockade, the Soviet Union contributed to the escalation of tensions. The Cold War developed into a complicated historical phenomena that had diverse roots that could be traced back to a wide variety of

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Tindall 10 locales across the globe and institutional structures. The event was spurred forward by a convergence of circumstances, which included ideological impetus, geopolitical competition, and struggles for authority. It is necessary to recognise the involvement of both the United States of America and the Soviet Union in the escalation of tensions throughout the duration of the Cold War. This will help to highlight the severity of the situation. Although the soviet Union caused the cold war and I must label a single superpower that is to blame. We can’t deny that both superpowers worked tirelessly throughout this particular historical era to achieve their individual goals, which helped to contribute to the complex dynamics of the era. I declared the Soviet Union responsible for the event even happening because of how strongly they strived to aggravate western powers, and spread their view beyond their territory. The Soviet Union tried to dominate its neighbors and set up a sphere of influence in Eastern Europe. The U.S. mostly just responded accordingly to Russia throughout the war, not all ending positively, but needing it to happen. In the end the Soviet Union tried too hard to push their views and ways upon other regimes, which never has or will end well.

Tindall 11 Work Cited Blakemore, E. (2022, March 31). What was the Cold War-and are we headed to another one? . Culture. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/cold-war Ioffe, J. (2019, May 25). The history of Russian involvement in America’s race wars . The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/10/russia- facebook-race/542796/ Olesen, T. B. (2008). Under the National Paradigm: Cold War Studies and Cold War politics in post-Cold War Norden. Cold War History , 8 (2), 189–211. https://doi.org/10.1080/14682740802018686 Peterson, J. W. (2017). The Cold War Root of post-Cold War tension: Duality of détente in the 1970s and neo-Cold War in the 1980s. Russian-American Relations in the Post-Cold War World . https://doi.org/10.7228/manchester/9781526105783.003.0003 Timeline. (2021). Cold War Mary , 383–388. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv1595mv2.18