Title: The Marshall Plan
Headings: The Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan
Contents
First post-war aid
The plan unveiled
Negotiating with Europe
Conditions on aid
Advantages for the US and Europe

Content: The Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan
General George C. Marshall, for whom the plan was named
The Marshall Plan was the population name for the European Recovery Program (ERP), a massive program of foreign aid rolled out by the United States between 1948 and 1951. It involved more than $12 billion of aid, the equivalent of $130 billion today. Marshall Plan aid was intended to assist with post-war reconstruction, though it came with clear conditions that shaped the development of recipient nations. Contents
1 First post-war aid
2 The plan unveiled
3 Negotiating with Europe
4 Conditions on aid
5 Advantages for the US and Europe
First post-war aid
Members of the US government viewed the economic reconstruction of Europe as a matter of great urgency. There were two reasons for this. Firstly, economic instability would generate political instability and may lead to communist revolutions. Secondly, the future of US trade was dependent on a productive and prosperous Europe. In March 1947, United States president Harry Truman unveiled what became known as the Truman Doctrine, pledging US support for European countries so they could exercise self-determination and resist a communist takeover. The first practical elements of this policy came in May 1947, with the approval of aid packages for Greece ($400 million) and Turkey ($100 million). Both nations were highly unstable in the years following World War II and were at risk of Soviet infiltration and/or communist revolution.