Why did Cold War break out?
This portion of the content deals with the reasons for the outbreak of the Cold War between the USA and the USSR
Competing Ideologies:
The Cold War confrontation between the USA and the USSR was a clash between the opposing ideologies of Communism (USSR) and Democracy (USA)
Supporters of Democracy felt that Communism was akin to slavery and that only Democracy could offer freedom. On the other hand, supporters of Communism felt that workers in Democratic societies were the slaves of the Capitalists
Feelings of Mistrust:
Feelings of mistrust between Communism and the West began in 1917 when the Communists first came to power after the 17 October revolution in Russia. This is because the Communists called for a world revolution which the USA feared would cause an end to Capitalism and Democracy
Poor relations with the West continued when Britain, France, Japan and the USA sent funds and troops to prevent the spread of Communism during the Russian Civil War, fighting on the sides of the anti-Bolshevik White Armies
After World War II, the USA and the USSR emerged as the world’s only two superpowers, both believing in different ideologies. They also had the power to spread their ideologies to other countries
Wartime Alliances Broke Down:
After 1945, there was no common enemy (Germany) to keep the USA and the USSR working together so they both returned to the old relationship of mistrust and suspicion
While the relationship was still alright, the West and the USSR agreed at the Yalta conference to temporarily divide Germany and its capital, Berlin, into four zones of occupation. When the war ended, the leaders of the Allied countries met again in Potsdam to finalise the discussion started in Yalta
Tensions began when the issue of who should be in charge of Poland was discussed. The Allies wanted free elections while the USSR wanted more land as it