World War II (1939–1945) was fought
between the Allied and the Axis powers. Britain,
France and Russia formed the allied camp;
the United States joined it later in 1941 after
the attack on Pearl Harbour. Germany, Italy
and Japan were the Axis powers. Despite the
ideological differences amongst Allies, it was
Germany’s fascist and war-mongering attitude
that compelled them to work together. United
States and Britain were not comfortable with
the Soviet Union given its communist form of
government.
At the end of the Second World, USSR and
USA emerged as super powers. In their bid to
gain ideological supremacy they entertained
mutual suspicion and distrust. Both countries
tried to spread their ideology either by force
or by enticement. In the newly emerged bi-
polar world, most of the countries had to
either ally with the US or with USSR. Many
Afro-Asian countries, India included, decided
to remain un-aligned. This group of countries
came together and formed the Non-Aligned
Movement (NAM).
The destruction and displacement
caused by the Second World War was much
greater than during the First World War
and so the world leaders realised the need
for a world organisation to prevent a war
in the future. As a result, United Nations
Organisation (UNO) was established in 1945.
UNO played its role in resolving the disputes
among the member states. But the cold war
situation prevented the UN from functioning
independently and effectively. The War had
ruined European economy and devastated
several cities in Western Europe. European
states had to come together initially for the
purpose of reconstruction of the shattered
economy, paving the way for its evolution as
a strong collective in course of time.
133The World affer World War II
In this chapter we will be discussing the
emergence of the two power blocs, strategies
used by them to enlarge their spheres of
influence, emergence of NAM, the role of
UNO in resolving disputes, the post-war
reconstruction in Europe and the establishment
of European Union, and finally the end of cold
war with the collapse of Soviet Union.
Post-War Conditions in Europe
The Second World War was more
catastrophic than the First World War. As many
as 60 million civilians were killed. In a planned
genocide the Nazis killed 6 million European
Jews. Millions became homeless and refugees.
The War had destroyed factories and farm
lands. Great cities such as Warsaw, Kiev, Tokyo
and Berlin were totally devastated. Britain and
France, which enjoyed prestige in international
politics prior to the War, were badly undermined.
The condition of post-war Europe appeared
grave with shortages of food and raw materials.
There was by high rates of unemployment.
The post-War material conditions
challenged the laissez-faire attitude of capitalist
countries. Many European countries turned into
social welfare states committed to enhancing
the conditions of its citizens. Not satisfied with
the measures of the ruling governments the
distressed masses tended to support socialist
movements. This was especially so in Greece
and Turkey where the communist movement
was active. The USSR supported parties and
movements which were left-leaning. By 1948 the
Soviets had established left wing governments
in the countries of eastern Europe notably in
Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary. Elections
held in Yugoslavia had already resulted in the
formation of a communist state under Tito. As
communism strengthened its grip on eastern
Europe, the Americans and the British began
to worry about the threat of Soviet-influenced
parties coming to power in western Europe.
Emergence of a Bi-Polar World
Following the defeat of Germany, Stalin,
Truman and Churchill, later replaced by
Clement Attlee, met at Potsdam near Berlin
in July 1945 to discuss the future of Germany.
During the course of the meeting Truman
informed Churchill about the invention of an
atomic bomb. A few days after the conference,
USA dropped atomic bombs over the Japanese
cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With the
bombardment of Japanese cities, Japanese
Emperor Hirohito announced his country’s
unconditional surrender. This act of bombing
Japan without informing USSR created a
diplomatic void between two countries. USSR
produced an atomic bomb in 1949.
M e a n w h i l e ,
difference of opinion
had arisen on the
creation of the
World Bank and the
International Monetary
Fund between the US
and the USSR. On 22
February 1946 George
Kennan, the American charge d’affaires
in Moscow, in an 8,000-word telegram to
the Department of State, known as ‘Long
Telegram,’ emphasised that the Soviet Union
did not see the possibility for long-term
peaceful coexistence with the capitalist world
and suggested that the best strategy was to
“contain” communist expansion around the
globe.
In March 1946 Churchill, who was invited
to speak at Fulton in Missouri, condemned
the Soviet action of installing communist
governments in Eastern European region.
He declared “From Stettin in the Baltic to
Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has
descended across the continent.” He called
for a western alliance which would stand
firm against communism. Churchill’s speech
is considered to signal the beginning of the
Cold War. Stalin criticised Churchill as a
warmonger. After the Iron Curtain Speech
of Churchill, USSR continued to tighten its hold over Eastern Europe. By the end of 1947
except Czechoslovakia the rest of the area was
brought under Communist rule.
The Berlin Blockade and Formation of East Germany and West Germany
By the Yalta and Potsdam Conference
agreements, Germany, with its capital city Berlin,
was divided into four zones, viz., U.S zone, U.K.
zone, French zone and USSR zone. By early
1948 all the three western zones were merged
together and with the Marshall Plan these zones
registered rapid growth and development.
USSR’s response was to put pressure on
communications between West Berlin and West
Germany. In June 1948 the Russians stopped all
road and rail traffic between West Berlin and
West Germany. The western powers decided to
maintain contact with Berlin by air. For nearly
eleven months West Berlin was supplied by air,
and vast quantities of supplies were flown in at
immense cost. In May 1949 USSR ended its ban
on land traffic and the crisis ended. The western
powers now went ahead and set up the Federal
Republic of Germany in August 1949 (FRG,
popularly known as West Germany) and USSR
set up the German Democratic Republic (GDR,
popularly known as East Germany) in October
- If the division of Germany marked the real
beginnings of the Cold War, the reunification of
Germany in 1990 signalled the end of Cold War.
Cold War
On 16 April 1947 Bernard Baruch, the US
Presidential adviser, in a speech at the State House
in Columbia, used the term “Cold War,” (earlier
coined by George Orwell, the great English
writer and author of Animal Farm and 1984), to
describe the relations between the United States
and the Soviet Union after the Second World
War. A war without weapons, the Cold War was
a war of ideologies.
Between 1945 and 1991, the Cold War
defined the foreign policy of the super powers.
During this period both the powers were in a
constant state of military preparedness. The US
wanted to promote open market for its goods and
wanted to stop the spread of communism. On the
other hand USSR wanted to spread communism
and desired to have friendly governments on its
borders who shared the same value systems. The
powers adopted six major strategies to achieve
their ends: Economic Aid, Military Pacts,
Propaganda, Espionage, Brinkmanship, and
Surrogate Wars.
Cold War Strategies
(a) Economic Aid
Truman Plan
In 1945 a civil war broke out in Greece.
Britain which had supported Greece for
years, now decided to withdraw given its own
economic problems. Sometime later trouble
started in Turkey also, with the communists
trying to take control. In 1947, Britain told the United States that it could no longer afford to
fight communist insurgencies in Greece and
Turkey and decided to leave it as of March 31.
United States chose to act. President Harry S.
Truman decided to intervene in support of
Greece and Turkey. He committed to provide
financial and military assistance to those
countries where communism was ascendant.
This laid the framework for US policy towards
containing communism, known popularly as
the Truman Doctrine which dominated until
the end of the Cold War.
Marshall Plan
With its experience in Greece and Turkey,
USA understood the value of American dollars
in containing Communism. So it decided to
move further in the same direction. In June
1947, George C. Marshall, the Secretary of
State under President Truman, came out with
an economic plan for all those European
countries which were affected by war. He
called it a European Recovery Programme.
Marshall declared, “Our Policy is directed not
against any country or doctrine but against
hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos”.
European states were provided with financial
assistance. Over the next four years 13,000
million dollars were pumped into western
Europe in the name of Marshall plan. By 1948
sixteen European states and the three Western
zones of Germany set up the Organisation for
European Economic Cooperation (OEEC).
Marshall Aid lasted for four years (1948–52).
Molotov, the soviet foreign minister dubbed
the Marshall Plan as “dollar imperialism”.
In the Soviet view, Marshall Plan was little
more than a ploy to spread American
influence.
Molotov Plan
In response to Marshall Plan, USSR set up
The Cominform (the Communist Information
Bureau) in September 1947. This was an
organisation in which all European communist
parties were represented. It discouraged trade
contact between the non-communist countries
and tried to forge ideological and material linkages
with its member countries. In 1949, USSR came
out with its economic package known as Molotov
Plan. Another organisation, known as Comecon
(Council of Mutual Economic Assistance), was
set up to co-ordinate the economic policies of
USSR and its satellite states.
(b) Military Pacts
Forging strategic alliances by signing
military pacts was another notable strategy
used by both the powers to enlarge their
camps. In 1948 Czechoslovakia was the only
democratic state in Eastern Europe and was
a buffer between the capitalist bloc and the
Soviet Union. In the elections of May 1948
the Communist party swept the polls. This
further alarmed the western powers.
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)
Despite the friendship of the United States,
Western European countries felt insecure.
Communist victory in Czechoslovakia added
to their fears.
The Western European countries were
now willing to consider a collective security
solution. The representatives of Great Britain,
France, Belgium, the Netherlands and
Luxembourg met in Brussels and signed a treaty
in March 1948 which provided for military,
political, economic and cultural collaboration.
After sometime USA, Italy, Canada, Iceland,
Denmark, Norway, Ireland and Portugal joined
the five Brussels Treaty Powers resulting in
the formation of NATO. Under NATO, all the
member states agreed to regard an attack on
any one of them as an attack on all of them
and placed their defence forces under a joint
NATO Command Organisation. This collective
defence arrangement applied only to attacks
that occurred in Europe or North America and
did not include conflicts in colonial territories.
In 1952, Greece and Turkey were admitted to
NATO and West Germany joined in 1955.
Warsaw Treaty Organisation
When West Germany became a member of
NATO, USSR saw it as a direct threat and decided
to make a counter arrangement. In May 1955, a
“treaty of mutual friendship, co-operation and
mutual assistance” was signed by Soviet Union
and seven of its European allies. It was named as The Warsaw Pact, as the treaty was signed
in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. The members
were Soviet Union, Albania, Poland, Romania,
Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and
Bulgaria. The treaty called upon member states
to come to the defence of any member if it was
attacked by an outside force. A unified military
command under Marshall Ivan S. Konev of
the Soviet Union was set up. The Warsaw Pact
remained valid till 1991, the year of collapse of
Soviet Union.
South East Asian Treaty Organisation (SEATO)
In 1949 China turned into a Communist
state under the leadership of Mao. Communism
was spreading from China to Korea. Alarmed by
the spread of communism in the Asian region,
in September 1951, a tripartite military alliance
was signed between the US, Australia and New
Zealand (known as the ANZUS treaty). In 1954
the US signed a Mutual Defence Treaty with
Nationalist China (Taiwan), providing the latter
with American support in the event of an attack
or invasion by Communist China.
In September of 1954, USA, France,
Great Britain, New Zealand, Australia, the
Philippines, Thailand and Pakistan formed the
Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO).
SEATO is seen as an Asian-Pacific version
of NATO. Interestingly only two south-east
Asian countries, the Philippines and Thailand,
had taken up membership and the rest of the
countries refused to be part of it. The alliance
was headquartered at Bangkok. SEATO existed only for consultation, leaving each individual
nation to react individually to internal threats.
SEATO was not as popular as NATO. With the
end of Vietnam War, SEATO was disbanded in
1977.
Central Treaty Organisation (CENTO)
In February 1955, Iraq and Turkey signed
a “pact of mutual cooperation” at Baghdad.
The membership was open to all countries in
the region. In April, Great Britain joined the
Pact, followed by Pakistan and Iran. The aim
was to check communist influence. A series of
events took place in Middle East in 1958 which
threatened regional stability: the Egypt–Syria
union, revolution in Iraq and civil unrest in
Lebanon. In response to these developments,
the United States intervened in Lebanon. The
members of the Baghdad Pact except for Iraq
endorsed the US intervention. Iraq left the pact.
As a result, the other signatories of the Baghdad
Pact formed the Central Treaty Organisation
(CENTO), moving its headquarters to Ankara,
Turkey. United States continued to support
the organisation as an associate, but not as a
member. In 1979, the Iranian revolution led to
the overthrow of the Shah and Iran withdrew
from CENTO. Pakistan also withdrew that year
after the organisation ceased to play an active
role. CENTO was formally disbanded in 1979.
(c) Propaganda
During the Cold War both the US and
the USSR used propaganda as effective tools
to glorify their ideology, while criticising the
opponents values and ideals. Pro-American
values were promoted in film, television, music, literature and art. While the ideology
of capitalism was promoted, communism was
condemned both as a political ideology and
a social and economic system by the United
States. In USSR propaganda was designed in
such a way that collective work and collective
leadership within the socialist frame were
encouraged. Democracy and market economy
was dubbed as a façade to mask an exploitative
capitalism.
(d) Espionage
Espionage or spying was a key ploy used
by the both super powers to get information on
military secrets and access government records.
During the Cold War both superpowers
maintained strong intelligence-gathering
agencies. In the United States the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA) was established
in 1947 and the Soviet Union’s Komitet
Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti (KGB), or
‘Committee for National Security’ was formed
in 1954. The espionage wars fuelled a great
amount of suspicion and hatred, and a huge
amount of popular films and novels with spies
as heroes and villains added to it (e.g. James
Bond films).
(e) Brinkmanship
Brinkmanship was a term that was
constantly used during the Cold War. The word
comes from U.S. Secretary of State John Foster
Dulles. In an interview to Life in 1956, he claimed
that, in diplomacy, “if you are scared to go to
the brink [of war], you are lost.” An example of
this policy was in 1962 when the Soviet Union
placed nuclear missiles in Cuba. This nearly
brought about a nuclear war. The United States
responded by putting a naval blockade around
Cuba. Finally, after much negotiations, the
missiles were removed from Cuba.
(f) Surrogate Wars
US and USSR engaged in surrogate or
proxy wars as part of Cold War strategy. The
Korean War of 1950–53 and the Vietnam
Wars of 1955–75 were classic examples of the
Cold War period. In both cases Soviet Union
supported the communist government in
North Korea and in North Vietnam and the
United States supported South Korea and South
Vietnam. These wars resulted in huge casualties
and losses, and turned out to be civil wars as well. International opinion was mobilised in
these wars, and anti-Vietnam protests made a
profound impact on the politics, society and
culture of the US and western Europe.
Third World Countries and Non-Alignment
In the aftermath of Second World War
many colonial countries in Asia, Africa and
Latin America got their independence from
imperial rule. The newly independent countries
were upset by the Cold War strategy of USA
and USSR. They viewed power blocs as another
form of imperialism and so decided to keep
away from such politics. Calling themselves
countries of Third World, a term coined by
French demographer and historian Alfred Sauvy
in 1952, they decided to follow an independent
and neutral policy in their foreign affairs.
Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)
In 1955 the first Afro-Asian Conference was
held at Bandung in Indonesia where 29 states,
mostly new independent states, including Egypt,
Indonesia, India, Iraq and the People’s Republic
of China, gathered to condemn colonialism,
apartheid and growing tensions due to Cold
War. The conference adopted a ‘Declaration on
Promotion of World Peace and Cooperation’
which included Nehru’s Panchsheel and a
collective pledge to remain neutral in the Cold
War. The ten principles of Bandung later became 139The World affer World War II
the guiding principles of NAM. The term
“non-alignment” was coined by V. K. Krishna
Menon in 1953 at the United Nations.
Based on the Ten Principles of Bandung,
the First Summit of NAM was held at Belgrade,
the capital of Yugoslavia in 1961. Five members
played a prominent role in the foundation of
NAM: Jawaharlal Nehru of India, Sukarno
of Indonesia, Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt,
Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana and Josip Broz Tito
of Yugoslavia. The objective of NAM was to
“create an independent path in world politics.
The most important objectives included ending
of imperialism and colonialism, promotion
of international peace and security and
disarmament, ending of racism and racial
discrimination.” The statement issued at the
end of the Belgrade conference also deprecated
military pacts with any great power or the
permission for any super power to build a
military base in its territories.
First Non-Aligned Conference, Belgrade
The following goals and objectives were set by the proponents of the Non-Aligned Movement at the 1955 Bandung Conference:
- Respect of fundamental human rights and of the objectives and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
- Respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.