Cold War Containment Essay

537 Words3 Pages

The Cold War was an eventful time for America. Many actions and policies were made, most of which were for one thing: Containment. To thoroughly explain the full effect of containment, it is essential to explain the history and events that led to the policies that may have or have not surrounded containment. Containment is the motive of keeping communism within the borders of soviet power. One of the reasons containment started was the different views the US opposed the communist system due to their capitalist principles. Many international policies like the Truman Doctrine or the Marshall Plan were made to enforce containment and spread the influence of capitalism to combat it. But when it came to domestic policies, containment wasn't the main topic, domestic policies like civil rights were present in America during the time but were not affected by containment. Containment had a significant influence on international commotions and an insignificant effect on the …show more content…

Presented by President Harry S Truman in a joint session of Congress, the Truman Doctrine was a plan to rebuild Europe and its economy after World War II. Helping Europe also presented a geographical advantage. The first sentence of the Truman Doctrine states “As in the case of Greece, if Turkey is to have the assistance it needs the United states must supply it.” President Truman picked Greece and Turkey because those European countries directly border the Soviet Union. If Europe became much more stronger and powerful than how it previously was, it would be able to enforce containment and keep communism within Soviet borders. After WWII, the United States established itself as a powerful country and believed that it was up to them to support other countries as well as protect them from communism. That was one of the first times the concept of containment was presented and helped set the goal for America, its allies, and future policies during the cold