Notes for World History
CAUSES OF THE COLD WAR
- Difference of principle: The basic cause of conflict lay in the differences of principle between the communist states and the capitalist states. The govts of most capitalist states were afraid of communism spreading to their countries.
- Stalin’s foreign policies: After the Nazi armies collapsed, Stalin tried to occupy as much German territory as he could and to acquire as much land as he could get away with from countries such as Finland, Poland and Romania. The West was alarmed at this and believed that Stalin would spread communism over the globe.
- West’s hostility to Soviet: During the war, the US President Roosevelt was inclined to trust Stalin. But after the death of Roosevelt in 1945, his successor Truman was more suspicious and toughened his attitude towards the communists. Further, US and Britain rejected Soviet request to have a share in the occupation of Japan. On the other hand, Stalin suspected that the USA and Britain were still keen to destroy communism.
- Atomic Bomb: The US did not tell Russia about the existence of atomic bomb until its use on Japan. Above all, the West had atomic bomb and the USSR did not.
