Cold War DBQ

Part A: Questions

Document A: The Soviet Union is controlling eastern and central Europe.

Document B: Kennan believes that the main element of U.S. policy should be the containment of it.

Document C1: The Marshall plan hopes to end hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos.
	C2: Any group seeking to perpetuate human misery for profit will encounter U.S. opposition.

Document D1: This cartoon shows that Stalin's "Marshall Plan" is hard and ineffective.
	 D2:This Cartoon is in favor of the U.S. Marshall plan.

Document E: Truman wishes to help nations resist outside pressures by financial aid.

Document F: Reason and majority will must be used to keep a country free.

Document G: The U.S. wants the Soviet Union to disavow responsibility for the North Korean attack and influence North Korean troops to withdraw.

Document H: The Soviet Union wants to help Cuba to develop.

Document I1: The Berlin airlift was a cooperative effort to drop food and supplies into West Berlin.
	 I2: The Berlin Airlift allowed the residents of West Berlin to survive.

						Part B: Essay

	During the Cold War, the U.S. and the Soviet Union wanted to spread Democracy and Communism respectively. Each side used military forces, espionage, and diplomacy to promote their interests and multiply their wealth. Many other nations were affected as the two superpowers tried to prove their strength in the world. The United States in particular was very strongly opposed to communism and justified intervention with The Truman Doctrine and The Marshall Plan.
	The U.S. was very successful in some regards, and unsuccessful in others pertaining to the containment of Communism. According to Document B, Kennan believed that containment of the Soviet influence should be the main goal of U.S. foreign policy. This idea was very greatly embodied with the Truman Doctrine which, according to Document E, was to assist free countries Primarily through financial means. The Truman Doctrine, created by then president Harry Truman was the general guideline of U.S. foreign policy. It was Legislatively supported by The Marshall Plan, otherwise known as the European Recovery Program. It's goal was to revive the European economy in order to allow free institutions to exist(Document C). The U.S. used these policies to help other parts of the world fight communism.Western Europe as well as Greece and Turkey were saved from communist influences. The U.S. was unable to stop the U.S.S.R. from expanding into Eastern and Central Europe (Document A) and from several countries in Latin America such as Cuba (Document H). These territories were held as a buffer zone in Europe to protect against U.S. intervention, and used a a threat close to the U.S. in the case of Cuba. The U.S.S.R. was eventually convinced to give up missile sites in Cuba in the Cuban Missile Crisis in exchange for the U.S. giving up missile sites in Turkey. The U.S. was able to save South Korea from the communist North, but was unable to save South Vietnam from North Vietnam.
	The Policy of containment had many social, political and economic effects on the people being protected by the US. Many of the countries were allowed basic freedoms not allowed by their enemy, the Soviet Union. Some of these rights included the right to free speech, private ownership, and choice of religion. Depending on the countries government, they may also have the right to choose leaders, and protest those that they do not like. The countries helped by the Marshall plan also had more trade between each other, and saw increase of their production as compared to prewar rates.
	The Containment of Communism saw many good and bad things for the United States. Because of the Cold War, The U.S. was able to spread economic influence partially from the Marshall Plan. The Cold War also lead to many technological advances such as the modern computer, and the first man landing on the Moon. The Cold War also led to the oppression of many countries that may have otherwise been free. Also during this time was the constant fear of a nuclear war between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R.
	As the U.S. was fighting to contain communism, there were many advances and regressions both in technology, and in U.S.-U.S.S.R. relations. Though the U.S. won the Cold War, it created a hostile environment in The Middle East, and promoted an interventionist policy that today is one of it's biggest faults. The U.S. will continue to promote democracy while the number of communist countries dwindle to a mere four.