Cold War

Assess the view that the Cold War divisions between 1945 and 1953 arose as a result of a clash between two ideologies: communism & capitalism

The polar ideological clash between the USA and USSR to a large extent contributed to the Cold War division between 1945 and 1953. After the collapse of Nazi Germany during WWII, a large power vacuum was left in central and Eastern Europe. This hostile environment, fuelled the ideological clash of the Cold War as the USSR aimed to spread communism and establish their ideology as the greater of the two, through there expansionist foreign policy. The USA contributed to this ideological clash also through its foreign policy of containment, which acted to contain the spread of communism as evident through crises such as the Berlin Blockade, thus resulting in the deterioration of international relations. However, it is important to note, that the ideological clash wasn't the only cause for division as both superpowers were influenced by national self-interest and misunderstanding.

Suspicion and deep mistrust were characteristics of the post-war era, leading to the rapid deterioration of wartime alliances. Most notably, both superpowers foreign policies contributed to the break down of these relationships. Stalin's expansionist policy in 1946, which saw the installation of communist governments within Eastern European states, began to convince Western statesmen that Stalin was a ruthless and unappeasable opponent, and most significantly, a threat to the capitalist system. In response, the West's feelings towards Stalin's foreign policy were best summed up with Churchill's famous 'Iron Curtain' speech in 1946. Additionally, revisionist's historians have seen Truman's anti-communist stance as an important contributory factor in the development of the Cold War. His adoption of an iron fist approach highlighted his belief that "another war was in the making" unless communism was contained and inevitably caused a rift between the superpowers, and resulted in the formation of the Truman Doctrine. The situation in Greece in 1947, helped define Truman's foreign policy against the USSR, which pledged to support those facing communist aggression, by attracting them to the Capitalist system. Furthermore, the Marshall Plan represented the economic arm of the USA's attack on the spread of communism by providing economic aid to those countries vulnerable to communism. However, the adoption of America's policy of containment further fueled the Cold War division as the Soviets saw this as "capitalist interference". Therefore, both superpowers foreign policies were heavily influenced by this ideological clash, and as a consequence immensely contributed to the division of relations.

However, Stalin was a highly complex individual, who was undoubtedly paranoid after World War II due to the insecurity caused by the war effort. As a result, his Post-War expansion into Eastern Europe in the late 40's was arguably defensive with the creation of a buffer zone to protect the Soviet Union from invasion from the West. At the Yalta Conference in 1945, Stalin's intent on the issue of security were clearly evident as he argued that a part of Poland be given to