What is a cold war? How did it start and how did it end?

Considered one of the most important events in world history, the Cold War is a political and military tension between the Soviet Union and the United States. The reason why this war is called “cold” is that the two sides did not openly declare war on each other and this period passed with various moves and an arms race. In this list, we have collected answers to all questions, such as what is the Cold War, between which countries was the Cold War period, how did the Cold War begin and end.

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What is a cold war? Between which countries?

This period of the war is known for the political and military tensions between the two superpowers, the Eastern Bloc led by the Soviet Union and the Western Bloc led by the United States. The proclamation of the Truman Doctrine (1947) marks the beginning of the Cold War and continued until 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed. This period affected most of the world’s population. During the Cold War, NATO was known as the Western Alliance. The Western Alliance consisted of countries that were or were not members of NATO. The Eastern Bloc consisted of communist and non-communist countries that were members of the Warsaw Pact. In addition to these two alliances, there was another bloc called the Non-Aligned Movement, which was not supported by either of them. Yugoslavia, China and some Eastern Bloc countries were also members of the Non-Aligned Movement. The reason for this was the differences between these countries and the Soviet Union.

So where did the term “cold war” come from? No wonder this period, which lasted about 50 years, is called “cold”; The two sides do not declare war on each other directly. This period passed only with political and military tensions.

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Arms race between the USA and the USSR

The US has rolled up its sleeves to produce the world’s first atomic bomb, which poses a threat to Nazi Germany. But before the atomic bomb was created, Nazi Germany surrendered. The US continued the project and succeeded in building the atomic bomb. He used the atomic bombs he built in Japan. The only country with an atomic bomb at that time was the United States, but this did not last long. Four years after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the Soviet Union produced the first prototype of the atomic bomb, and the tests were successful.

This prototype atomic bomb started an arms race between the US and the Soviet Union. Thus, the two sides hostile to each other continued to produce atomic bombs. Over time, the hydrogen bomb was created, which was about 100 times more powerful than the atomic bomb. Later, technology developed and nuclear warheads began to be produced, of which only 8 could destroy the world.

The Truman Doctrine became official US policy.

George Keenan was a diplomat serving in the Soviet Union in 1946. He sends an information letter to warn the United States of America at the time. Keenan states that the Soviet Union is trying to increase its influence in the world. However, he asks the United States to take responsibility and view the Soviet Union as a threat. President Truman accepts Keenan’s article and makes it official US policy.

Following this doctrine, the US declares that it will oppose totalitarian regimes that pursue a policy of violence. After the proclamation of the Truman Doctrine, the Cold War begins, which will last about 50 years.

the Korean War broke out

II. During World War II, Korea is occupied by the Japanese, but after a while, Japan surrenders and retreats. After that, the Soviet Union began to rule the north of Korea, and the United States – the south. After some time, the US and the USSR come to an agreement and leave the country. But they leave behind two governments opposing each other. North Korean leader Kim Il Sung wants to annex a very weak South Korea, but the Truman Doctrine does not allow it. Later, despite the fact that Kim Il Sung turns to the Soviet Union for help, he does not receive the expected answer. The leader of the Soviet Union, Stalin sends the leader of North Korea to communist China. Over time, he becomes involved in the war in China.

Marshall Plan went into effect

Realizing that political and military power alone would not be enough, the US needed a new plan. Thus, he developed an economical wing. Then the Marshall Plan was developed. II. The devastating effects of World War II destabilized European countries. The United States thought that the communist parties would become stronger because of this instability. To prevent this, George C. Marshall provided financial assistance to European countries. After a while, the Truman Doctrine proved to be rather weak. II. Known for his aggressive patrons during World War II, Eisenhower won the 1952 presidential election. Eisenhower brought in the CIA and ran covert operations to prevent the development of communism. Of course, during this period, the KGB, the intelligence agency of the Soviet Union, also carried out highly covert operations.

The Berlin Wall was built

Korea was not the only country caught in the middle of a power struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union. The same fate befell him in Germany. II. Fragmented after the Second World War, Germany was divided between the Soviet Union, France, Great Britain and the United States and divided into four regions. While the Allied Powers agreed to resurrect Germany, the Soviet Union, World War II. He did not invest in the Eastern Region, which was under his control, and interfered with its development, since Germany suffered greatly in World War II.

In 1948, the Allied Powers merged the three regions they ruled into the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany). Seeing this as a threat to the Soviet Union, Stalin established the German Democratic Republic and began to fortify the region. For almost 40 years, Germany was divided into two parts. In this process, West Germany became economically stronger than East Germany. After that, migrations from east to west began, and the Berlin Wall was built to prevent this.

The enmity between the Soviet Union and the United States grew even more because of the Berlin Wall. Many bad things happened because of the Cold War, like the Vietnam War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Ultimately, the Eastern Bloc was dissolved, and this so-called Cold War was left behind.

How did the Cold War end?

In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Central Committee of the UPC. This situation caused some easing on both sides. With the change of system in Eastern Europe, there was a setback in the Cold War when the Berlin Wall came down. Mikhail Gorbachev, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990, dissolved the Soviet Union in 1991, ending the Cold War.

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