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Essay On The Iron Curtain

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The metaphorical Iron Curtain played an important part in world history. The Iron Curtain was put in place by the Soviet Union in order to separate itself from European countries after World War II. The Soviet Union also wanted to block contract with western nations, especially the United States. The USSR’s isolation lasted until after the Cold War, which acted as the peak of tensions between the US and the Soviet Union. The quarantine allowed the Soviet Union to militarily, politically, and ideologically sequester itself from all other nations. In the meantime, right after World War II Winston Churchill, the British prime minister, was invited to America to give a speech at Westminster College in Missouri. Churchill accepted and gave a speech highlighting his views on foreign affairs. The term Iron Curtain was used loosely beforehand, but Churchill made it popular when he brought it up in his speech. The curtain represents the divide itself and iron signifies the curtain as impenetrable. Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech was significant because it declared the beginning of the Cold War and called for better relations between the United States and Britain. First, Churchill emphasized his criticism of the Soviet Union’s …show more content…

First, U.S. president Harry Truman and some other U.S. officials passionately accepted his speech. They agreed that the Soviet Union was up to no good with their supposed expansion. In order to deter them, the U.S. would need a strong stance. However, other government officials were opposed to Churchill’s speech because Great Britain’s empire was on the decline, and they thought Churchill wanted to use the U.S. to gain more power. Next, Stalin received the speech as a promotion of war. The speech did, in fact, mark the beginning of the rising tensions resulting in the Cold War. Churchill’s speech, overall, greatly influenced world relations after World War

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