Cold War Dbq Essay

“It is perfectly obvious that when nations compete to increase their military might, the danger of war becomes greater, not lesser” (Doc. 5). This quote was said by Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev during the Cold War. Much of the Cold War resulted from the United States and the Soviet Union competing to build a nuclear bomb, which is what Khrushchev is referring to. However, to understand the Cold War, it is important to first understand what it was in definitive terms. The Cold War was a forty five year long struggle between the United States and Union, the world’s superpowers of the time. The Cold War was a war of betrayal, competition, morals, misunderstanding, and fear. Spies, nuclear bombs, blockades, and rockets are weaved into the events

President Harry Truman, United States president at the time, said “I believe it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation [domination] by armed minorities or by outside pressure.” (Doc. 2). Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev said “Capitalism will find its grave in another world war, should it unleash it.” (Doc.5). As evident by these quotes, both countries felt that their social system was the greatest. They also felt that in defending their social system, they were protecting the world from an unfair, unjust society. This is why the war was so high staked and tense. To each side, winning the war meant saving the world. An example of a physical representation of the divide between communism and capitalism was the Berlin Wall. Post World War II, Germany was divided into to two countries, the capitalist West and the communist East. However, in the heart of East Germany, Berlin was also divided, the West being capitalist and the East being communist, making West Berlin a beacon of capitalism and hope surrounded by suppressive communism. In 1961, the Berlin Wall was constructed by the Soviet Union, a wall dividing East and West Berlin. This wall stood as symbol of the great divide between communism and capitalism, oppression and freedom. (Doc.3). The two sides of the Cold War were the United States and the Soviet Union, at least

The first step they took was, in fact, what started the tension between the United States and Soviet Union. This action was when they formed the alliances to protect themselves from invasion and began the tension between the Soviet Union and West Europe. Another was the various proxy wars, such as Vietnam and Korea. A proxy war is a war fought to substitute a war between the two countries on either side. (Doc. 4) In addition, the Nuclear Arms and the Space Race, both of which were competitions of whom could develop technology faster, contributed to the cold war. However, the most dangerous and terrifying decision they made was the Cuban Missile Crisis. In 1962 it was discovered that the Soviet Union had nuclear bombs in Cuba, only 90 miles off the coast of the US. The Soviet Union placed the bombs in Cuba out of fear of a nuclear war. This way, if it became necessary, the Soviet Union could be prepared. (Doc 7). However, once the United States discovered the bombs, they quickly grew tense. Through several instances of miscommunication and misinformation, both parties thought the other wanted a war, though neither did. This action is similar to the Berlin Blockade, in the sense that both events were tense situations that put the United States and Soviet Union at serious risk of war. Another action was the construction of the Berlin wall. The Berlin wall was a tall, concrete wall dividing West and