Introduction
Economic pressure, selective aid, half-truths, and assassinations were all tools of the Cold War utilized by the United States and the Soviet Union. One of the most significant works drafted after World War II, the Marshal Plan, outlined a strategy for restoring Western Europe’s economy and infrastructure from 1949 to 1951. The plan’s primary goals were the revival of manufacturing, the improvement of agricultural practices, and the maintenance of fiscal security.
The US and the USSR had competing national interests over Europe’s future, leading to the Cold War period of 1945–1990. Military actions at the surface level were ramped up to prevent a nuclear conflict. After WWII, the Soviet Union vowed that Germany would never again invade it. The Soviet Union’s goal was also to cause a collapse among Eastern Europe’s non-communist countries. At this time, the United States’ worries about Europe rose, prompting her to take a more active role in the region. The final battles of World War II were fought in Europe, leaving the continent’s economies in shambles and Eastern Europe under communist authority.
Historiographical Background
Before World War II, Europe’s economy was thriving as the region experienced widespread industrialization due to the continent’s adoption of the industrial revolution. From around 1945 to roughly 1990, the Soviet Union controlled much of Eastern Europe. Snyder asserted that the Marshall Plan was an attempt by the United States to aid in the recovery of Europe’s economy. It was essential in the economic and military recovery of Western Europe. In the 1980s, Western European nations’ financial systems gained power while communist states declined precipitously, primarily due to help from the United States.
The United States believed that a country’s neighbors would suffer due to its transition to communism because of reduced commerce and cooperation. Lorenz affirmed that when the USSR pressed Turkey to open the Dardanelles Strait, allowing an attack from the West, the United States showed its support by announcing the Truman Policy. The United States provided food and supplies to West Berlin when Stalin sought to blockade the city in an effort to seize power and replace the Market System with a Communist System. This helped Europe keep its cities free from Soviet rule.
After the fall of the Soviet dictatorship in Romania in 1989, democracy quickly swept throughout the country. America and the other allies ceded control of Western Europe back to the Germans. Germany’s first federal republic was established that year, and the country gained its independence a few months later, in August, following elections. With American aid, Europe had finally begun to be freed.
With President George Bush’s assistance, the United States could assist Germany in getting the Soviet Union to drop its opposition to Germany joining NATO. Bush met with Gorbachev and Kohl to discuss a variety of issues. The final peace deal with Germany was signed on September 12. The accord also required the complete evacuation of Soviet armed forces from Germany. Germany gave up its chemical, nuclear, and biological weapons for world peace; the Cold War officially ended at this point.
Economic and Political Policies
The United States has been instrumental in the Western world’s push toward closer economic integration. By pooling resources and forming the European Union, trade within the region was boosted. European traders came to terms with using the euro as a joint currency and signed trade pacts that have helped revive their economy.
Since World War II had weakened Britain, it could not provide aid to European countries such as Turkey and Greece; as a result, Britain asked the United States to step in. To prevent the Soviet Union from taking control of the European economy, the United States gave financial aid. They were also instrumental in bringing peace to the ongoing civil wars. In a sense, the United States prevented Europe’s military defeat and diplomatic embarrassment.
Following WWII, only the US and the USSR remained as global superpowers. As a result of the communist takeover of much of Eastern Europe at this time, the map of Europe had to be redrawn. Attributable to this split, two distinct regions emerged: the communist-led eastern bloc and the democratic western bloc. NATO was formed by the unification of Western Europe and the US, while the collaboration of Eastern Europe and the USSR created the Warsaw Pact.
There was an iron wall separating the two alliances, as Winston Churchill put it. When the USSR took over various Western European countries, it cut off all help to those countries. Members of NATO in Europe could not deploy even lightly armed troops to their protection due to a lack of resources. The Americans used satellites for extensive reconnaissance of the adversary.
Without American support, European countries would not have been able to influence the big crisis in the Mediterranean region or even quell the problem in the Gulf. Since Americans were not among the war’s casualties, they suffered no significant losses. They utilized their riches to free countries from the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence. Integration, resulting in the European Union and the Council of Europe, shaped the political borders that European states drew up after World War II. The collapse of the USSR led to a stabilization of European economies and an expansion of the European Union from six to twelve member nations.
Military Aid
Compared to European economies, the United States did not take as much of a hit during both World Wars. The United States was well-equipped to defend itself ferociously; therefore, they were able to assist Europe in getting back on its feet after the war. Western Europe staved off an invasion from the USSR due to the advantages of nuclear weapons and the production of technically advanced weapons made possible by developments in Information Technology. While the Eastern Bloc was able to develop much weaponry, they were too primitive to withstand an invasion.
It was in 1949 when the United States established NATO. Countries including the USA, UK, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, Luxembourg, and Portugal were all a part of it. It was an international military force to protect Europe from the Soviet Union. The United States was a primary provider of its military hardware. The military was also instrumental in maintaining peace and preventing further bloodshed during European civil strife.
Germany Merger
The origins of the Cold War can be traced back to a struggle for global dominance. The United States resolved to end any interference with the freedom of Western Europe after the Soviet Union took control of Eastern and some areas of Central Europe. After the Soviet Union was defeated in a coup d’état in Czechoslovakia in 1948, it could no longer expand its sphere of influence. As a result, they decided to focus on establishing a firm grip on Germany.
However, Western Europe did not agree to give up control of Western Germany. This was when the debate over Germany’s future as a unified state began. Because West Germany refused to become a communist state, the Soviet Union cut off all land routes leading there. US President Harry Truman promptly ordered planes to provide food items, coal, and medication to the famished Germans. Each minute, the aircraft kept dropping off supplies to guarantee no shortages. In roughly 280,000 flights, about $3 million worth of supplies were transported.
Many countries in Eastern Europe at the time were under communist rule, and the construction of the Berlin Wall exacerbated their isolation. Stalin ordered the shooting of everyone who crossed the wall; as a result, tensions rose in Europe. The rift between the two German groups widened; due to their inability to get Marshall’s help, eastern Germans endured terrible hardships.
With the construction of the wall that effectively separated West and East Germany, Berlin became a crucial location in the Cold War. France, Britain, and the United States each controlled one quarter, while Russia took charge of the other quarter. The allies considered European Union membership necessary for the continent’s progress. The result was the unification of the three sections of Berlin under Allied control while isolating the section under Soviet rule. Stalin was in danger because the undeveloped Germans could sense the disparity between their side and the Allies.
Stalin decided to cut off access to the allied sector of Berlin by pretending to rebuild the road while destroying the canals and roads leading there. The Allies understood that the USSR could not invade them because of their nuclear deterrent. Since Stalin could not shoot down their planes, they relied on air transport to bring necessities to their zones.
Over time, Western countries, led by the United States, amassed more wealth than their Communist counterparts. The Berlin Wall came down due to rising dissatisfaction in East Germany. The resulting freedom of movement for Germans coincided with the gradual transition to a more democratic form of governance in East Germany as communist dominance waned.
The progress made in West Germany was largely responsible for uniting East and West Germany. The United States remained steadfast in its belief that communism is incompatible with a thriving economy. As a result, the United States contributed significantly to Germany’s unification.
Many people living in East Germany tried to find escape routes to West Germany. Those who stayed behind eventually reversed their position against the Soviet Union’s communist leadership. Germany was a prosperous European nation. With the greatest GDP in Europe, it served as the region’s economic engine. After the communist regime in East Germany disintegrated in 1990, the country was reunited with the West.
Europe Merger
After taking over as leader of the Soviet Union’s Communist Party, Mikhail Gorbachev saw that the Cold War was pointless and ended it. He then attempted to negotiate compromises with Washington. This was due to his knowledge of his country’s deteriorating economy and the United States’ newly obtained control over nuclear weapons. Accordingly, to be more cooperative, he ordered a general reduction in Soviet Union force.
As US-Soviet relations improved, the United States became more hospitable and open to its neighbors. This resulted in a more unified strategy for conducting business across national borders. The Brezhnev Doctrine, which forbade Eastern European countries from leaving the Soviet sphere of influence, was one of the policies Gorbachev announced he would no longer apply. Once Eastern European countries won their independence from the Soviet Union, they immediately began democratic reforms. Western European countries abandoned communist regimes in favor of market-based economies.
Social Impact
All the countries in the West that were under the United States’ wing were united. Organizations such as NATO and the European Union were formed due to this new relationship, delineating with whom Europeans may associate. They needed to be on good terms with the US allies or face an invasion from the Soviet Union. Due to the deteriorating living circumstances in East Germany, many Germans fled to West Germany when the country was divided.
During the Nazi era, the German people were threatened by slave labor from the nations Germany had devastated. Those who made it to Western Germany received food and other necessities attributable to the Marshall Plan. America provided aid to the Western economy so that refugees might settle in and begin contributing to it. The Soviet Union’s attack on Germany ended following the communists’ erection of the Berlin Wall and suppression of economic development in the nation.
The fall of communism in East Germany in 1990 led to the country’s reunification. Countries needed economic changes in addition to political ones. Countries like Italy, America, Germany, and Britain took advantage of a new window of opportunity made possible by economic modernization in the fields of trade and agriculture. Each nation rushed to rebuild and resume pre-war activity levels and, in some cases, exceeded them.
Developing new markets and incorporating cutting-edge technologies into plant operations were crucial factors in driving this expansion. The issues, however, persisted, and Western Europe in the 1970s faced the challenge of rising unemployment; in addition, inflation was a factor. The Cold War and the strained relationships with the USSR negatively impacted these activities. Although Western Europe’s economy improved after World War II, high unemployment in the 1970s posed great challenges.
Primary Sources
This study relied on primary sources, which are reports by people with unquestionable knowledge of the topic. Information from Hinnershitz, Borchardt, Hartley, Paridon, and Dailey is helpful because it gives the reader access to reputable sources and original study results. The subject and goals of the research helped choose the primary sources to use. Information from Hinnershitz and Borchardt enhanced understanding of the rebuilding of Europe after World War II.
To back up the arguments, it was best to use primary sources that provided direct descriptions of the topic. This article draws heavily on first-hand accounts because they provide the most direct evidence for the issues being investigated. Paridon, Dailey, and Hartley demonstrate originality in thought, provide accounts of historical findings, and disseminate novel information. Since participants or witnesses created the sources in the past, they are used as the primary basis for analysis in historical research. Primary sources are the most trustworthy evidence bases; nevertheless, this study also uses secondary sources to bolster its credibility.
Conclusion
Without the massive amounts of aid the United States gave Europe during the Cold War, European nations would have collapsed much worse following the invasion of the Soviet Union. The United States’ support for economic freedom was crucial to the integration’s eventual success. The US brought about systemic change under the Marshall Plan and the Truman Doctrine. The Soviet Union’s invasion of Germany had to end after the communists erected the Berlin Wall and stifled economic growth in the country. Western Europe needed the United States’ protection against the Soviet Union, and the only way to get such protection was to be on the same side as the US.
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