Origin of the Cold War

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After the Second World War America and the Soviet Union gained power in Europe. Though these to countries never fought one another, they waged a cold war of economic, military and ideological rivalry which last through the second half of the twentieth century.

The origin of the Cold War began with the Russian Revolution in nineteen-seventeen, which created a Soviet Russia. The Soviet Russia did not have the same economic and ideological state as the United States. The Civil war in Russia in which Western powers unsuccessfully intervened, dedicated to the spreading of communism. This fueled an environment of mistrust and fear between Russia and the rest of Europe. The United States pursued a policy of isolationism; however the situation became one of dislike rather than conflict. Stalin was afraid of oppression he tried to form an alliance with the democratic Western powers against Nazi Germany. This plan failed and in nineteen- thirty nine Stalin signed the Nazi-Soviet pact with Hitler. This move increased anti-Soviet hostility in the west, however delayed the onset of war between Russia and the United States. The war between Germany and France did not last long. The Nazi defeated France quickly, enabling Germany to invade the Soviet Union.

When Germany invaded Russia it united the Soviets with Western Europe. Later on America join in an alliance against their common enemy. The war altered the global balance of power, weakening Europe and leaving Russia and the United States as the global super powers. However, the wartime alliance was not an easy one and with Russia liberating many areas of Eastern Europe which it want to put its own brand of government. They wanted to turn Eastern Europe into soviet satellite states to gain...

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...etonated its first atomic weapon, negating the America advantage and reducing the chance of the powers engaging in a ‘regular’ war because of fears over the consequences of nuclear conflict. There were debates over the next few years among NATO powers over whether to rearm West Germany and in 1955 it became a full member of NATO. A week later eastern nations signed the Warsaw Pact, creating a military alliance under a Soviet commander.

Therefore the two sides formed power blocks which opposed each other. Although there was no traditional warfare there was a nuclear standoff hardened. However, by the time the Cold War had spread beyond Europe as China became communist. This les to the development of mutually assured destruction, whereby either the United States nor Russia would not go to war with one another because of the resulting conflict would destroy the world

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