Cold War: Capitalist & Communist Blocs, Post-WWII

Capitalist Bloc

The United States pursued economic and political hegemony in the West. Its leadership was based on economic and military power, cultural dominance, and the political values of liberal democracy. The bloc based its system on these values, although some countries supported dictatorial regimes to prevent Communist influence. Governments were anti-communist.

US Intervention

President Truman initiated a policy of American intervention to contain communism in Europe, known as the Truman Doctrine. U.S. soldiers and bases increased in Greece and Turkey. In the 1950s, Senator McCarthy began a crackdown against suspected communist sympathizers, known as the "witch hunt," generating a climate of suspicion. Under Eisenhower's presidency, conservatism strengthened, along with the fear of nuclear war and communist expansion. Kennedy's presidency brought a policy change with his New Frontier program, attempting to eliminate social segregation. By the late 1970s, the company returned to conservatism.

Western Europe

The American administration believed that communist parties in these states could promote communist expansion. To control the continent, the Marshall Plan was created, conditioning the expulsion of communists from European countries like France, Italy, and Belgium. The U.S. ensured that European powers, including the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), were under its influence. The military administration lasted until 1950, and the FRG became an economic powerhouse.

Japan

Japan was ravaged and occupied by the U.S. until 1951. A liberal democracy was established, maintaining the emperor. The parliamentary monarchy was consolidated with a conservative party that ruled until the 1990s. Japan experienced spectacular economic growth, but its policy had no major relevance.

The Communist Bloc

Popular Democracies

In Eastern Europe, liberated by the Red Army, coalition governments were formed between Communists and other forces. They enjoyed prestige due to their struggle against the Nazis. The Cold War caused the USSR to reinforce control over its sphere of influence. Soviet Communist parties took exclusive power, establishing a Soviet-like political system. These "people's democracies" became satellite states of the USSR. Yugoslavia, under Tito, opted for an independent socialist model. Fear that other countries would follow led Stalin to purge governments to ensure loyalty. The creation of NATO and the Marshall Plan in Western Europe led to the formation of the Warsaw Pact and COMECON in the East, coordinating military and economic policies.

Response to Soviet Hegemony

The response to Soviet hegemony came with de-Stalinization and attempts to initiate independent paths to socialism.

• In Czechoslovakia and East Berlin in 1953, and Poland in 1956, worker conflicts were repressed by the Soviet Army.
• In Hungary in 1956, the communist government of Nagy initiated reforms that deviated from the Soviet orbit. The USSR sent the Soviet army.
• Albania's communist regime severed ties with the USSR and initiated relations with China.
• In Czechoslovakia in 1968, the Dubcek government initiated reforms. The intervention by Warsaw Pact troops ended the conflict, known as the Prague Spring.
• Romania did not participate in the suppression of the Warsaw Pact troops in Czechoslovakia and adopted a foreign policy away from the Soviet Union.