Title: Why did the United States commit itself to containing communism between 1945 and 1960? - eNotes.com
Headings: Why did the United States commit itself to containing communism between 1945 and 1960?
The Cold War
Why did the United States commit itself to containing communism between 1945 and 1960?
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Content: Last Updated by eNotes Editorial on May 1, 2020
Colin Cavendish-Jones, Ph.D.
College Professor, Lawyer
M.A. from Oxford University Ph.D. from St. Andrews University
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The United States of America committed itself to a policy of containing communism in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War because this was the most pragmatic way of pursuing its strategic, economic, and ideological goals. In 1945, the US was still finding its way as the major power of the Western hemisphere. It would not have been realistic to try to fight another war with the Soviet Union immediately after the Axis powers had been defeated at such high cost and given that the Soviet Union had already initiated its nuclear program in 1943. On the other hand, it would clearly have been detrimental to US global interests to pursue a policy of isolationism and allow communism to spread unchecked. Even if the Soviet Union has been content to exercise power only over Eastern Bloc countries, this could still have caused serious disruption to US supply chains, particularly in the case of oil. However, the Soviet Union was seeking to extend the influence of communism into Western Europe, as well as into South and Central America, quite apart from its aggressive policy in Asia. This meant that containment was necessary simply to preserve the balance of power. The United States acted in alliance with Western European countries in this policy of containment, one of the first significant moves being the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949. Last Updated by eNotes Editorial on May 1, 2020
David Morrison
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Communism was the official ideology of the Soviet Union. As the USSR and the United States were locked in a bitter rivalry throughout the Cold War, it's not surprising that successive administrations tried to contain the spread of its governing ideology.