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Should America have allied with Stalin? During the 1940s, Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin were known as the vilest men in the world. Joseph Stalin was the dictator of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) who rose to power in the late 1920s. In 1939, the peak of World War II, Joseph Stalin and German dictator Adolf Hitler signed a nonaggression pact. But very soon after they signed the pact, Germany broke the Nazi-Soviet pact and invaded the USSR. Stalin had ignored warnings from the Americans and the British about a potential invasion. Since Stalin seemed to listen to no one but himself was it a smart choice for America to become allied with Stalin? In my opinion, it was not a quick-witted choice for America to do so. Stalin killed a lot of people by starvation, and shooting innocent people. Stalin also only cared about himself and no one else, he made people …show more content…
believe in a way that it was, “Stalin’s way or the highway”. Also he believed in total government control, which is not in any way an ideal way to live. First of all, Stalin killed an insane amount of innocent people.
According to the article, Hitler vs Stalin, “Tens of thousands of people were shot by Soviet state police and hundreds of thousands deported.” Just because of their nationality those innocent victims were shot and deported. He also starved millions of people, according to the same article, “Those who remained lost their land and often went hungry as the state requisitioned food for export. The first victims of starvation were the nomads of Soviet Kazakhstan, where about 1.3 million people died.” Stalin wanted to clear the farmlands to make room for industries and by doing so 1.3 million people died from starvation since he took their land they had no food to eat. To think a man couldn’t get any eviler he ordered The Great Terror, “In all, 682,691 people were killed during the Great Terror, to which might be added a few hundred thousand more Soviet citizens shot in smaller actions.”. It is said under Stalin’s order more than 6 million people were killed by his actions. Now why would America want to be allied with such a murderous
dictator? Furthermore, Stalin only cared about himself it was either “Stalin’s way or the highway” one would say. According to an article on history.com, “Stalin ruled by terror and with a totalitarian grip in order to eliminate anyone who might oppose him.” So ultimately if you didn’t support Stalin you ended up 6 feet under. He not only killed people who didn’t support his insane ideas, but he accordingly , “During the second half of the 1930s, Stalin instituted the Great Purge, a series of campaigns designed to rid the Communist Party, the military and other parts of Soviet society from those he considered a threat.”. Yet, Stalin couldn’t stop there, according to the same article on history.com, “Additionally, Stalin built a cult of personality around himself in the Soviet Union. Cities were renamed in his honor. Soviet history books were rewritten to give him a more prominent role in the revolution and mythologize other aspects of his life. He was the subject of flattering artwork, literature and music, and his name became part of the Soviet national anthem. His government also controlled the Soviet media.” He should have just changed the Soviets name to the Stalin Union. Again why in the world would America want to be allied with such a hard headed individual like Stalin? Last, Stalin believed in total government control. My main piece of evidence to back this up is an article from history.com which states, “Starting in the late 1920s, Joseph Stalin launched a series of five-year plans intended to transform the Soviet Union from a peasant society into an industrial superpower. His development plan was centered on government control of the economy and included the forced collectivization of Soviet agriculture, in which the government took control of farms. Millions of farmers refused to cooperate with Stalin’s orders and were shot or exiled as punishment. The forced collectivization also led to widespread famine across the Soviet Union that killed millions.” He killed millions just because he wanted total government control to transform the Soviet Union into an industrial superpower. Stalin treated his people like robots, historylearningsite.co.uk stated, “Stalin’s control over Russia meant that freedom was the one thing that people lost. The people of Russia had to read what the state allowed, see what the state allowed and listen to what the state allowed. The state’s control of the media was total. Those who attempted to listen, read etc. anything else were severely punished. Everybody knew of the labor camps and that was enough of a deterrent.” You either had to be a robot under Stalin’s control or go to a labor camp to be tortured and maybe even killed. In conclusion, I don’t believe that America should have allied with Stalin. Overall, Stalin killed a lot of people by starvation, and even shooting innocent people that did not want to follow his devilish rules. Stalin also only cared about himself and no one else, he made people believe that it was, “Stalin’s way or the highway”. Also he believed in total government control, which is not in any way an ideal way to live. Americas decision to ally with Stalin was only to overcome and take down Hitler other than that they were enemies. Which brings us to the Cold War, which is a whole other story that could go on for hours…
1. What conclusions can you draw about Kennan’s assessment of the Soviet threat to American interests around the world? What can you infer about his opinion of this larger threat, based on his description of the factors motivating Soviet aggression?
The United States and The Soviet Union were originally joined together by the want to defeat The Nazi army, in 1941-1945. The alliance remained, and strengthened, among the two until the end of World War II. At the end of World War II, a rupture between the two occurred. The differences began earlier, but there was a straw that broke the camels back. The reason The United States and The Soviet Union’s alliance did not work out is because The Soviet Union and The United States were complete opposites, The Soviet Union proved to be faulty, and they were never truly allies.
Around the world, many countries did choose to ally themselves with the United States, but it was soon clear that the USSR would not be among them. The Soviets were developing their own nuclear program at the same time as the Manhattan Project was underway, and Soviet espionage provided them with crucial information from the Manhattan Project that helped their progress (Walker, 67). When the United States used the atomic bombs on Japan, the USSR believed that the United States would seek to threaten Soviet interests. Instead of simplifying the growing conflict between the United States and the USSR, the use of atomic weapons on Japan only made the situation more complex.
As the Soviet Union approaches Berlin from the East, the allied forces invade from the west. Hitler’s German war-machine was crumbling. The United States had to make an enormous decision. Should they attack the Red Army of the Soviet Union? Should they keep the increasingly shaky alliance with the Russians and end the war in Europe? America chose to remain allies, resulting in a decision that affected the world for the next 46 years. World War 2 had concluded but now there was a new enemy, the Soviet Communist.
This meant that neither Germany, nor the Soviet Union, would invade the other country. This pact was made because the USSR wanted to remain at peace with Germany and secure time to build up their military, however, the pact did not last long (“Nonaggression Pact”). On June 22, 1941, Germany attacked the Soviet Union without provocation. This lead the Soviet Union to join the Allied side of the fight. They were accompanied by the United States, United Kingdom, France, and many others. Although Stalin had led his country into joining the Allies, there were always underlying tensions between the countries.
Stalin did not trust the West, Britain and USA. because he remembered they had invaded Russia in 1919 and had ignored Stalin's appeal for a second front. Stalin was convinced they wanted the USSR to destroy itself when fighting Germany. At the end of the war, the Allies met at Yalta and later Potsdam.... ...
Before the war, “America had depicted the Soviet Union as almost the devil-incarnate. The Soviet Union had depicted America likewise so their 'friendship' during the war was simply the result of having a mutual enemy (Trueman, Chris).” In other words, these two super powers hated each other. The United States saw the Soviets equal to the devil and the Soviets made sure that everyone knew that the only reason they were fighting side by side in World War II was because they both were enemies with Nazi Germany at the time. Both were very powerful powers that would be able to fight side by side but still be enemies. This what made these two powers so unique. The steps leading up to the cold was a lot different then how other wars started in the past. It all started in the production of the atomic bomb from the Americans. Joseph ...
Although the Soviet Union was an “ally” to America, they never really had an actual relationship. It was more of an alliance of convenience. The U.S. has always wanted to prove itself to be the best. Being the first country to have and use a nuclear weapon was a huge deal. As a result, President Truman told Stalin that we had a weapon and Stalin told us to use it.
Harry Truman During his presidential terms, Harry Truman showed resilience when faced with the many foreign affairs he faced. Events that would highlight Truman’s characteristics as an admirable leader include the hardships he faced during World War II, and his efforts for the containment of communism during the Cold War tensions. Truman fell into office after Franklin Delano Roosevelt passed away from a cerebral hemorrhage, he was sworn into office on April 12, 1845 therefore becoming the 33rd president of the United States. Within a month of Truman’s position in office, World War II in Europe had nearly concluded, within a month Hitler had committed suicide and Germany was throwing up the white flag, however the war in the Pacific with Japan had escalated.
Solzhenitsyn complains about the western allies supporting and aligning with the USSR. He offers explanations to why the allies decided to aid USSR against Nazi Germany. However, although his arguments are somewhat valid, Solzhenitsyn is missing two main keys and reasons to why the west aligned with Soviet Russia. First, The USSR signed a pact with Germany and even aided Germany take over Eastern Europe. This is problematic because if both Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia work together with Imperial Japan, the Allies had no chance. The Allies needed to divide these nations. This same tactic was worked in the 1970’s with China. Convince China to become “enemies” with soviet Russia. Why would the US support a horrible dictator like Mao Zedong? To prevent a collaboration of communist superpowers that could overrun the world overnight. And second, The Allies simply had no real proof of the atrocities being committed by Stalin during his reign.
In the darkest hours of World War II, people looked for encouragement, guidance, and even acceptance to keep carrying on. Many people discovered whom they could trust and whom they could follow. Through those rough times came grave actions and harsh decisions. In those dark days, two leaders stood out among all men. These two leaders were Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. Because of their actions, Stalin and Hitler became two of the most feared totalitarian dictators of all time.
In 1945 the United States saw the Soviet Union as its principal ally. By 1947, it saw the Soviet Union as its principal opponent. The United States misunderstood the Soviet regime. .Despite much pretence, national security had not been a major concern of US planners and elected officials. historical records reveal this clearly. Few serious analysts took issue with George Kennan's position that "it is not Russian military power which is threatening us, it is Russian political power" ; or with President Eisenhower's consistent view that the Russians intended no military conquest of Western Europe and that the major role of NATO was to "convey a feeling of confidence to exposed populations, which was suposed to make them sturdier, politically, in their opposition to Communist inroads."
The Effects of Stalin on Russia Much like Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin was one of the most ruthless and despised people in the recorded history of the world. Stalin, though, found it fit to abuse his people in any way he saw fit. This man started what history now calls "The Great Purge. " Through the late 1920's when the rest of the world was living it up as the roaring 20's came to an end, Joseph Stalin was setting the stage for gaining absolute power by employing secret police repression against opposing political and social elements within his own Communist Party and throughout society.
Taubman, William. Stalin's American Policy: From Entente to Detente to Cold War. New York: Norton, 1982. Print.
After the First World War that led to death of millions of people, many countries decided to put measures to avoid any future conflict. The League of Nations in the 1920s came up with the idea of collective security where countries acting together would discourage aggression and act to stop the aggressor. This did not work out well as countries failed to agree on common policies. As a result, appeasement was considered. It was a policy that was adopted by the British government in the1930s. It was formulated from the belief that some countries such as Germany were unfairly treated in the Versailles treaty of 1918-1919. Adolf Hitler came into power in Germany on January 1933 after exploiting the depression-afflicted economy and the vehement popular resentment against Versailles treaty. The Nazi leader started by alarming the diplomats on his hatred towards the parliamentary system of governance and democratic government. The policy of appeasement had good intentions, but failed to put measures against aggression by the Germany government, which eventually led to World War 2.