Korea, China, and Vietnam all encountered conflict with Americans during the Cold War. The Cold War was a period of East-West competition, tension, and conflict short of full-scale war. It had many causes and was influenced by many events, including both the Yalta Conference and the spread of McCarthyism. Tensions between Democracy and Communism were so bad that in East Asia the U.S did not even recognize the People's Republic of China until Nixon became president. Because of the nuclear technology of the time, the Cold War could have drastically changed the face of the
Historians such as Hobsbawn argue this, and believe that the traditional great power rivalry was fundamental to the start of the Cold War. Many different historians argue different points as to why the war began, McMahon argues that the difference between the Capitalist West and the Communist East was the fundamental reason for the beginning of the Cold War, the difference in ideology has been rife for many years leading up to the Cold War. Oppositely, Gaddis believes that the personality of the leaders, in particular Stalin had a main role and where he is concerned, all other leaders could have been removed, leaving only Stalin and the Cold War still would of started. I believe that the difference in Ideologies played a key, dominant role in the development of the Cold War, however I do appreciate that power rivalry and also leader personalities had a role. Firstly, Hobsbawn immediately dismisses the fact that ideology played a role in the development of the Cold War, he says ‘Confrontation would probably have developed even without ideology.’ Hobsbawn then goes onto say that after Kennan came up with his policy of Containment, the USA saw themselves as the only ‘rival power to Russia’ and that they would have to ‘contain its pressure by uncompromising resistance, even If Russia had not been communist’.
That one, simple word caused perhaps one of the biggest controversies and rivalries in history. Communism could easily take the blame for the cause of the cold war. The Soviet Union and the United States joined forces during WWII out of necessity, not out of the goodness of their hearts. The United States had to practically beg the Soviets to begin fighting Japan. Even as allies, the countries did not trust each other entirely.
The American government went out of its way to portray communists as scarier and more not the same as what Americans were. They propagandized the scary aspects of the Soviet totalitarian system. Socialist Soviet became bigger when the World War II created a strong anti-communist movement that was irritated by propaganda. It made American’s fearful and stronger movement to help the United States to against communist states. Anti-communist propaganda brought America several medium including books, pamphlets, comics, films, and radio during the Cold War.
We joined forces with other nations in that effort, an effort that was mostly successful in Europe. Containment in East/Southeast Asia had one big success in Japan, but the war in Korea, losing China, and losing Vietnam in ’75 were major failures in containing communism. The Cold War was an era of major paranoia over a nuclear war and the spread of “red” throughout the world, and the U.S. leaders over that time period did their best to keep those bad things at
1 The USA was deeply hostile towards the Soviet Union and fearing a spread of communism, adopted a policy of containment. 4 In Vietnam the target of containment was Ho Chi Minh and the Vietminh front he had created in 1941. Ho and his chief lieutenants were communists with long-standing connections to the Soviet Union. 5 Hoping to halt a takeover by the communist North Vietnamese (led by Ho Chi Minh) 6, US officials chose to support the anti-Communist prime minister of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem1,. As opposed to the other superpower, America got directly involved, sending not only financial aid1 but actively participating in the military effort.
To what extent was the deterioration in Sino-Soviet relations in the years 1958-1969 due to personal rivalries? After the Communist revolution in China 1949, Sino-Soviet relations were thought, and feared, to be the start of a revolution that could threaten communism in China that could threaten communism in countries world wide. However, from the time of the Great Leap forward of 1958 to the Ussuri River dispute of 1969 these two once great allies had brought one another to the brink of nuclear war. The question is whether this was down to nothing more than the individual personalities of the heads of states, or was it more do do with the national rivalries that had been abundant even before the rise of communism in either country? In 1958 the Great Leap Forward was a Chinese policy designed to start an industrial revolution across China.
Today there are only five communist nations, China, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, and Vietnam. The Reagan Doctrine not only contained the spread of communism but it ended the Soviet’s attempt to spread and keep alive communism in other nations. As the Soviets were able to aid countries with arms and money to establish communism in those nations, the United States were able to aid the nation’s freedom fighters with arms, money, and military training, not only in an act for self defense, but to also assist in the ending of corrupt and socialist governments. Whether some consider it good or bad, the U.S.S.R. is no more. The disadvantage of the doctrine was that it caused many lives to be lost in the fight to end communism, but it also restored order in many
World War II left Europe in a distraught and confused state, and although The United States, Soviet Union, and allies had won, it seemed as if the United States and Soviet Union had not yet settled all of their differences. Germany was left in a completely disastrous state , and desperately needed the aid of some of the worlds super power countries , The United States and Soviets came to their aid, and at the Yalta Conference they decided to split Germany and Berlin . As the differences in Ideologies grew , the Soviet Union built the Berlin Wall to physically separate themselves and their occupation zone from the United States. into occupation zones. The Berlin Wall was a physical symbol of the political and emotional differences between East Germany and West Germany.
Many American citizens in 1959 viewed the Vietnam War as a righteous battle against communism, similar to the Iraq War today however now many view this war as a necessary battle against terrorism. Looking at America's overall goal in Vietnam, it is evident that we did not come close to keeping South Vietnam from collapsing, who fell to communist rule in 1975 (Frankum 210). America's involvement in the conflicts of Vietnam and Iraq were so discordant that our government, people, and military were constricted. Yet both wars were fought with the knowledge that America may change the invaded nation, which brings a precarious question; what makes the government believe that they have the right to go into a country and change it to the way they