What is the origin of the Cold War? The Cold War is a time when guns are silent. Causes of the Cold War that broke out in the 20th century

We do not want a single inch of foreign land. But we will not give our land, not a single inch of our land, to anyone.
Joseph Stalin

The Cold War is a state of contradiction between the two dominant world systems: capitalism and socialism. Socialism represented the USSR, and capitalism, mainly the USA and Great Britain. Today it is popular to say that the Cold War is a confrontation between the USSR and the USA, but at the same time they forget to say that the speech of the British Prime Minister Churchill led to the formal declaration of war.

Causes of the war

In 1945, contradictions began to appear between the USSR and other members of the anti-Hitler coalition. It was clear that Germany had lost the war, and now the main question is the post-war structure of the world. Here, everyone tried to pull the blanket in his direction, to take a leading position relative to other countries. The main contradictions were European countries: Stalin wanted to subordinate them to the Soviet system, and the capitalists sought to prevent the Soviet state from entering Europe.

The causes of the Cold War are as follows:

Social. Rallying the country in the face of a new enemy.
Economic. The struggle for markets and resources. The desire to weaken the economic power of the enemy.
Military. An arms race in the event of a new open war.
Ideological. The society of the enemy is presented exclusively in a negative connotation. The struggle of two ideologies.

The active stage of confrontation between the two systems begins with the US atomic bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. If we consider this bombing in isolation, then it is illogical - the war is won, Japan is not a competitor. Why bomb cities, and even with such weapons? But if we consider the end of the Second World War and the beginning of the Cold War, then in the bombing appears the goal is to show the potential enemy their strength, and to show who should be the main thing in the world. And the factor of nuclear weapons was very important in the future. After all, the atomic bomb appeared in the USSR only in 1949 ...

The beginning of the war

If we briefly consider the Cold War, then its beginning today is associated exclusively with Churchill's speech. Therefore, they say that the beginning of the Cold War is March 5, 1946.

Churchill's speech March 5, 1946

In fact, Truman (President of the United States) delivered a more specific speech, from which it became clear to everyone that the Cold War had begun. And Churchill's speech (it is not difficult to find and read it on the Internet today) was superficial. It talked a lot about the Iron Curtain, but not a word about the Cold War.

Stalin's interview of February 10, 1946

On February 10, 1946, the Pravda newspaper published an interview with Stalin. Today this newspaper is very hard to find, but this interview was very interesting. In it, Stalin said the following: “Capitalism always breeds crises and conflicts. This always creates the threat of war, which is a threat to the USSR. Therefore, we must restore the Soviet economy at an accelerated pace. We must prioritize heavy industry over consumer goods.”

This speech of Stalin turned over and it was on it that all Western leaders relied, talking about the desire of the USSR to start a war. But, as you can see, in this speech of Stalin there was not even a hint of the militaristic expansion of the Soviet state.

The real start of the war

To say that the beginning of the Cold War is connected with Churchill's speech is a bit illogical. The fact is that at the time of 1946 it was just the former Prime Minister of Great Britain. It turns out a kind of theater of the absurd - the war between the USSR and the USA is officially started by the former Prime Minister of England. In reality, everything was different, and Churchill's speech was just a convenient pretext, on which it was later profitable to write everything off.

The real beginning of the Cold War should be attributed to at least 1944, when it was already clear that Germany was doomed to defeat, and all the allies pulled the blanket over themselves, realizing that it was very important to gain dominance over the post-war world. If you try to draw a more accurate line for the start of the war, then the first serious disagreements on the topic of “how to live on” between the allies happened at the Tehran conference.

The specifics of the war

For a correct understanding of the processes that took place during the Cold War, you need to understand what this war was in history. Today, more and more often they say that it was actually the third world war. And this is a huge mistake. The fact is that all the wars of humanity that were before, including the Napoleonic wars and World Wars 2, these were wars of the capitalist world for the rights dominated in a certain region. The Cold War was the first global war where there was a confrontation between two systems: capitalist and socialist. Here it may be objected to me that in the history of mankind there were wars, where at the forefront was not capital, but religion: Christianity against Islam and Islam against Christianity. In part, this objection is true, but only from happiness. The fact is that any religious conflicts cover only part of the population and part of the world, while the global cold war has engulfed the whole world. All countries of the world could be clearly divided into 2 main groups:

Socialist. They recognized the dominance of the USSR and received funding from Moscow.
Capitalist. Recognized US dominance and received funding from Washington.

There were also "indefinite". There were few such countries, but they were. Their main specificity was that outwardly they could not decide which camp to join, therefore they received funding from two sources: both from Moscow and from Washington.

Who started the war

One of the problems of the Cold War is the question of who started it. Indeed, there is no army here that crosses the border of another state, and thereby declares war. Today you can blame everything on the USSR and say that it was Stalin who started the war. But this hypothesis is in trouble with the evidence base. I will not help our “partners” and look for what motives the USSR could have for the war, but I will give the facts why Stalin did not need an aggravation of relations (at least not directly in 1946):

Nuclear weapon. In the United States it appeared in 1945, and in the USSR in 1949. You can imagine that the overcalculated Stalin wanted to aggravate relations with the United States when the enemy has a trump card up his sleeve - nuclear weapons. At the same time, let me remind you, there was also a plan for the atomic bombing of the largest cities of the USSR.
Economy. The United States and Great Britain, by and large, made money on the Second World War, so they had no economic problems. The USSR is another matter. The country needed to restore the economy. By the way, the USA had 50% of the world GDP in 1945.

The facts show that in 1944-1946 the USSR was not ready to start a war. And Churchill's speech, which formally started the Cold War, was not delivered in Moscow, and not at its suggestion. But on the other hand, both opposing camps were extremely interested in such a war.

As early as September 4, 1945, the United States adopted Memorandum 329, which developed a plan for the atomic bombing of Moscow and Leningrad. In my opinion, this is the best proof of who wanted war and aggravation of relations.

Goals

Any war has goals, and it is surprising that our historians for the most part do not even try to define the goals of the Cold War. On the one hand, this is justified by the fact that the USSR had only one goal - the expansion and strengthening of socialism by any means. But Western countries were more resourceful. They sought not only to spread their world influence, but also to inflict spiritual blows on the USSR. And it continues to this day. The following goals of the United States in the war in terms of historical and psychological impact can be distinguished:

Make a substitution of concepts at the historical level. Note that under the influence of these ideas, today all the historical figures of Russia who bowed to Western countries are presented as ideal rulers. At the same time, everyone who advocated the rise of Russia is presented by tyrants, despots and fanatics.
The development of an inferiority complex among Soviet people. They tried to prove to us all the time that we are somehow not like that, that we are guilty of all the problems of mankind, and so on. Largely because of this, people so easily accepted the collapse of the USSR and the problems of the 90s - it was a "retribution" for our inferiority, but in fact the enemy simply achieved the goal in the war.
Blackening of history. This stage continues to this day. If you study Western materials, then there our whole history (literally all) is presented as one continuous violence.

There are, of course, pages of history with which our country can be reproached, but most of the stories are sucked out of thin air. Moreover, liberals and Western historians for some reason forget that it was not Russia that colonized the whole world, it was not Russia that destroyed the indigenous population of America, it was not Russia that shot Indians with cannons, tying 20 people in a row to save cannonballs, it was not Russia that exploited Africa. There are thousands of such examples, because every country in history has hard-hitting stories. Therefore, if you really want to poke around in the bad events of our history, be kind enough not to forget that Western countries have no less such stories.

Stages of war

The stages of the Cold War is one of the most controversial issues, since it is very difficult to graduate them. However, I can suggest dividing this war into 8 key phases:

Preparatory (193-1945). Still walking World War and formally the “allies” acted as a united front, but there were already disagreements and everyone began to fight for post-war world domination.
Beginning (1945-1949). The time of complete US hegemony, when the Americans manage to make the dollar a single world currency and strengthen the country's position in almost all regions except those in which the USSR army was located.
Razgar (1949-1953). The key factors of 1949, which make it possible to single out this year as a key one: 1 - the creation of atomic weapons in the USSR, 2 - the economy of the USSR is reaching the indicators of 1940. After that, an active confrontation began, when the United States could no longer speak with the USSR from a position of strength.
First détente (1953-1956). The key event was the death of Stalin, after which the beginning of a new course was announced - the policy of peaceful coexistence.
A new round of crisis (1956-1970). Events in Hungary led to a new round of tension, which lasted almost 15 years, which also included the Caribbean crisis.
Second détente (1971-1976). This stage of the Cold War, in short, is associated with the start of the work of the commission to relieve tensions in Europe, and with the signing of the Final Act in Helsinki.
Third crisis (1977-1985). A new round, when the cold war between the USSR and the USA reached its climax. The main point of confrontation is Afghanistan. In terms of military development, the countries staged a "wild" arms race.
End of the war (1985-1988). The end of the Cold War falls on 1988, when it became clear that the “new political thinking” in the USSR was ending the war and so far only de facto recognized the American victory.

These are the main stages of the Cold War. As a result, socialism and communism lost out to capitalism, since the moral and psychic influence of the United States, which was openly directed at the leadership of the CPSU, achieved its goal: the leadership of the party began to put their personal interests and benefits above socialist foundations.

Forms

The confrontation between the two ideologies began in 1945. Gradually, this confrontation embraced all spheres of public life.

Military confrontation

The main military confrontation of the Cold War era is the struggle between the two blocs. On April 4, 1949, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was created. NATO included the USA, Canada, England, France, Italy and a number of small countries. In response, on May 14, 1955, the OVD (Warsaw Pact Organization) was created. Thus, there was a clear confrontation between the two systems. But again, it should be noted that the first step was taken by the Western countries, which organized NATO 6 years earlier than the Warsaw Pact appeared.

The main opposition, about which we have already partially spoken, is atomic weapon. In 1945, this weapon appeared in the United States. Moreover, in America they developed a plan to strike with nuclear weapons at 20 major cities USSR, using 192 bombs. This forced the USSR to do even the impossible to create its own atomic bomb, the first successful tests of which took place in August 1949. In the future, all this resulted in an arms race on a huge scale.

Economic confrontation

In 1947, the United States developed the Marshall Plan. According to this plan, the United States provided financial assistance to all countries affected during the war. But there was one limitation in this plan - only those countries that shared the political interests and goals of the United States received assistance. In response to this, the USSR begins to provide assistance in post-war reconstruction to countries that have chosen the path of socialism. Based on these approaches, 2 economic blocks were created:

Western European Union (ZEV) in 1948.
Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) in January 1949. In addition to the USSR, the organization included: Czechoslovakia, Romania, Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria.

Despite the formation of alliances, the essence has not changed: ZEV helped with US money, and CMEA helped with USSR money. The rest of the countries only consumed.

In the economic confrontation with the United States, Stalin took two steps that had an extremely negative effect on the American economy: on March 1, 1950, the USSR moved from calculating the ruble in dollars (as it was around the world) to gold backing, and in April 1952, the USSR, China and Eastern European countries are creating an alternative trade zone to the dollar. This trading zone did not use the dollar at all, which means that the capitalist world, which previously owned 100% of the world market, lost at least 1/3 of this market. All this happened against the backdrop of the "economic miracle of the USSR." Western experts said that the USSR would be able to reach the level of 1940 after the war only by 1971, but in reality this happened as early as 1949.

Crises

Crises of the Cold War

Event	date
	1948
Vietnam War	1946-1954
	1950-1953
	1946-1949
	1948-1949
	1956
	Mid 50s - mid 60s
	Mid 60s
War in Afghanistan

These are the main crises of the Cold War, but there were others, less significant. Next, we will briefly consider what the essence of these crises was, and what consequences they led to in the world.

Military conflicts

Many people in our country do not take the Cold War seriously. We have an understanding in our minds that war is “drawn swords”, weapons in hand and in the trenches. But the Cold War was different, although even it was not without regional conflicts, some of which were extremely difficult. The main conflicts of those times:

The split of Germany. Formation of Germany and the GDR.
Vietnam War (1946-1954). It led to the division of the country.
War in Korea (1950-1953). It led to the division of the country.

Berlin Crisis of 1948

For a correct understanding of the essence of the Berlin crisis of 1948, one should study the map.

Germany was divided into 2 parts: western and eastern. Berlin was also in the zone of influence, but the city itself was located deep in the eastern lands, that is, on the territory controlled by the USSR. In an effort to put pressure on West Berlin, the Soviet leadership organized its blockade. It was a response to the recognition of Taiwan and its admission to the UN.

England and France organized an air corridor, supplying the inhabitants of West Berlin with everything they needed. Therefore, the blockade failed and the crisis itself began to slow down. Realizing that the blockade leads to nothing, the Soviet leadership removes it, normalizing life in Berlin.

The continuation of the crisis was the creation of two states in Germany. In 1949, the western states were transformed into the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). In response, the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was created in the eastern lands. It is these events that should be considered the final split of Europe into 2 opposing camps - West and East.

Revolution in China

In 1946, a civil war broke out in China. The Communist bloc staged an armed coup seeking to overthrow the government of Chiang Kai-shek from the Kuomintang party. Civil War and the revolution were made possible by the events of 1945. After the victory over Japan, a base was created here for the rise of communism. Starting in 1946, the USSR began supplying weapons, food and everything necessary to support the Chinese communists who were fighting for the country.

The revolution ended in 1949 with the formation of the Chinese People's Republic(PRC), where all power was in the hands of the Communist Party. As for the Chiang Kai-shek, they fled to Taiwan and formed their own state, which was very quickly recognized in the West, and even admitted to the UN. In response, the USSR leaves the UN. This important point, as he had a great influence on another Asian conflict - the Korean War.

Formation of the State of Israel

From the first meetings of the UN, one of the main issues was the fate of the state of Palestine. At that time, Palestine was actually a British colony. The division of Palestine into a Jewish and an Arab state was an attempt by the US and the USSR to strike at Great Britain and its positions in Asia. Stalin approved of the idea of creating the state of Israel, because he believed in the power of the "leftist" Jews, and expected to gain control over this country, gaining a foothold in the Middle East.

The Palestinian problem was resolved in November 1947 at the UN Assembly, where the position of the USSR played a key role. Therefore, we can say that Stalin played a key role in the creation of the state of Israel.

The UN Assembly decided to create 2 states: Jewish (Israel" Arab (Palestine). In May 1948, Israel's independence was declared and immediately the Arab countries declared war on this state. The Middle East crisis began. Great Britain supported Palestine, the USSR and the USA supported Israel. In In 1949, Israel won the war, and immediately a conflict arose between the Jewish state and the USSR, as a result of which Stalin severed diplomatic relations with Israel.The battle in the Middle East was won by the United States.

Korean War

The Korean War is an undeservedly forgotten event that is little studied today, which is a mistake. After all, the Korean War is the third in history in terms of human casualties. During the war years, 14 million people died! More casualties in only two world wars. The large number of casualties is due to the fact that this was the first major armed conflict in the Cold War.

After the victory over Japan in 1945, the USSR and the USA divided Korea (a former colony of Japan) into zones of influence: North Korea - under the influence of the USSR, South Korea - under the influence of the USA. In 1948, 2 states were officially formed:

Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Zone of influence of the USSR. The leader is Kim Il Sung.
The Republic of Korea. US zone of influence. The leader is Lee Seung Mann.

With the support of the USSR and China, on June 25, 1950, Kim Il Sung starts a war. In fact, it was a war for the unification of Korea, which the DPRK planned to end quickly. The factor of a quick victory was important, since this was the only way to prevent the US from intervening in the conflict. The beginning was promising, the UN troops, which were 90% American, came to the aid of the Republic of Korea. After that, the DPRK army retreated and was close to collapse. The situation was saved by Chinese volunteers who intervened in the war and restored the balance of power. After that, local battles began and the border between North and South Korea was established along the 38th parallel.

First détente of the war

The first détente in the Cold War occurred in 1953 after the death of Stalin. An active dialogue began between the opposing countries. Already on July 15, 1953, the new government of the USSR, headed by Khrushchev, announced its desire to build new relations with Western countries, based on a policy of peaceful coexistence. Similar statements were made from the opposite side.

A major factor in stabilizing the situation was the end of the Korean War and the establishment of diplomatic relations between the USSR and Israel. Wanting to demonstrate to Western countries the desire for peaceful coexistence, Khrushchev withdrew Soviet troops from Austria, having obtained a promise from the Austrian side to maintain neutrality. Naturally, there was no neutrality, just as there were no concessions and gestures from the United States.

Detente lasted from 1953 to 1956. At that time, the USSR established relations with Yugoslavia, India, began to develop relations with African and Asian countries, which had only recently freed themselves from colonial dependence.

A new round of tension

Hungary

At the end of 1956, an uprising began in Hungary. Local residents, realizing that the position of the USSR after the death of Stalin, became noticeably worse, raised an uprising against the current regime in the country. As a result, the cold war came to its critical point. For the USSR there were 2 ways:

Recognize the revolution's right to self-determination. This step would give all the other countries dependent on the USSR the understanding that at any moment they could leave socialism.
Suppress the rebellion. This approach was contrary to the principles of socialism, but only in this way it was possible to maintain a leading position in the world.

The 2nd option was chosen. The army crushed the rebellion. For suppression in places it was necessary to use weapons. As a result, the revolution was won, it became clear that the "detente" was over.

Caribbean crisis

Cuba is a small state near the US, but it almost led the world to a nuclear war. At the end of the 50s, a revolution took place in Cuba and Fidel Castro seized power, who declared his desire to build socialism on the island. For America, this was a challenge - a state appeared near their border, which acts as a geopolitical enemy. As a result, the United States planned to resolve the situation by military means, but were defeated.

The Cuban Missile Crisis began in 1961, after the USSR secretly delivered missiles to Cuba. This soon became known, and the US President demanded to withdraw the missiles. The parties escalated the conflict until it became clear that peace was on the threshold of nuclear war. As a result, the USSR agreed to withdraw its missiles from Cuba, and the United States agreed to withdraw its missiles from Turkey.

"Prague Vienna"

In the mid-1960s, new tensions arose, this time in Czechoslovakia. The situation here strongly resembled the one that was earlier in Hungary: democratic tendencies began in the country. Basically, young people opposed the current government, and the movement was headed by A. Dubcek.

A situation arose, as in Hungary - to allow for a democratic revolution, meant to give an example to other countries that the socialist system could be overthrown at any moment. Therefore, the Warsaw Pact countries sent their troops to Czechoslovakia. The rebellion was suppressed, but the suppression caused outrage throughout the world. But it was a cold war, and, of course, any active actions of one side were actively criticized by the other side.

Detente in the war

The peak of the Cold War came in the 1950s and 1960s, when the aggravation of relations between the USSR and the USA was so great that a war could break out at any moment. Beginning in the 1970s, the war was detente and the subsequent defeat of the USSR. But in this case, I want to focus briefly on the United States. What happened in this country before "détente"? In fact, the country ceased to be popular and came under the control of the capitalists, under which it is to this day. One can say even more - the USSR won the Cold War from the USA in the late 60s, and the USA, as the state of the American people, ceased to exist. Capitalists seized power. The apogee of these events is the assassination of President Kennedy. But after the United States became a country representing capitalists and oligarchs, they already won the USSR in the Cold War.

But let us return to the Cold War and détente in it. These signs were indicated in 1971 when the USSR, the USA, Britain and France signed agreements on the start of the work of the commission to solve the Berlin problem, as a point of constant tension in Europe.

final act

In 1975, the most significant event détente era of the Cold War. In those years, a pan-European meeting on security was held, in which all the countries of Europe took part (of course, including the USSR, as well as the USA and Canada). The meeting was held in Helsinki (Finland), so it went down in history as the Helsinki Final Act.

As a result of the congress, an Act was signed, but before that there were difficult negotiations, primarily on 2 points:

Freedom of the media in the USSR.
Freedom to leave "from" and "to" the USSR.

The commission from the USSR agreed to both points, but in a special formulation that did little to oblige the country itself. The final signing of the Act was the first symbol that the West and the East can agree among themselves.

New aggravation of relations

In the late 70s and early 80s, the new round Cold War, when relations between the USSR and the United States heated up. There were 2 reasons for this:

The United States in the countries of Western Europe placed medium-range missiles that were capable of reaching the territory of the USSR.

The beginning of the war in Afghanistan.

As a result, the Cold War reached a new level and the enemy engaged in their usual business - an arms race. It hit the budgets of both countries very painfully and ultimately led the United States to a terrible economic crisis in 1987, and the USSR to defeat in the war and subsequent collapse.

Historical meaning

Surprisingly, in our country the Cold War is not taken seriously. best fact demonstrating the relationship to this historical event here and in the west, this is the spelling of the name. In our country, the "Cold War" is written in quotation marks in all textbooks and with capital letter, in the west - without quotes and with a small one. This is the difference in attitude.

It really was a war. Just in the understanding of people who have just defeated Germany, war is weapons, shots, attack, defense, and so on. But the world has changed, and in the Cold War contradictions and ways to resolve them have come to the fore. Of course, this resulted in real armed clashes.

In any case, the results of the Cold War are important, because the USSR ceased to exist as a result of it. This ended the war itself, and Gorbachev received a medal in the United States "for victory in the cold war."

cold war- global geopolitical, military, economic and ideological confrontation in 1946-1991 between the USSR and its allies, on the one hand, and the United States and its allies, on the other. This confrontation was not a war in the international legal sense. One of the main components of the confrontation was the ideological struggle - as a result of the contradiction between the capitalist and what was called socialist models in the USSR.

After the end of the bloodiest war in the history of mankind - the Second World War, where the USSR became the winner, the prerequisites were created for the emergence of a new confrontation between the West and the East, between the USSR and the USA. The main reasons for the emergence of this confrontation, known as the "cold war", were the ideological contradictions between the capitalist model of society, characteristic of the United States, and the socialist model that existed in the USSR. Each of the two superpowers wanted to see itself at the head of the entire world community and equip life, following its ideological principles. In addition, the Soviet Union after the Second World War established its dominance in the countries of Eastern Europe, where communist ideology reigned. As a result, the United States, along with Great Britain, was frightened by the possibility that the USSR could become a world leader and establish its dominance, both in the political and economic spheres of life. America did not like communist ideology at all, and it was the Soviet Union that stood in its way to world domination. After all, America got rich during the Second World War, it needed to sell its manufactured products somewhere, so the countries of Western Europe, destroyed during the hostilities, needed to be restored, which was offered to them by the US government. But on the condition that the rulers - the communists in these countries will be removed from power. In short, the Cold War was a new kind of competition for world domination.

First of all, both countries tried to enlist the support of other countries in their course. The United States supported all the countries of Western Europe, when the USSR supported the countries of Asia and Latin America. In fact, during the Cold War, the world was divided into two confrontational camps. Moreover, there were only a few neutral countries.

If we consider the chronological stages of the Cold War, then there is a traditional and most common division:

the initial phase of the confrontation (1946-1953). At this stage, the confrontation takes shape almost officially (from Churchill's Fulton speech in 1946), an active struggle for spheres of influence begins, first in Europe (Central, Eastern and Southern), and then in other regions of the world, from Iran to Korea. The military parity of forces is becoming obvious, taking into account the presence of both the United States and the USSR of atomic weapons, military-political blocs (NATO and the Warsaw Pact) appear that support each superpower. The first clash of opposing camps at the "test site" of third countries - the Korean War;

acute stage of confrontation (1953-1962). This stage began with a temporary weakening of the confrontation - after the death of Stalin and criticism of the cult of his personality by Khrushchev, who came to power in the USSR, there were opportunities for a constructive dialogue. However, at the same time, the parties increased their geopolitical activity, which is especially obvious for the USSR, which stopped any attempts by the allied countries to leave the socialist camp. In combination with the ongoing arms race, this brought the world to the brink of open war between nuclear powers - the Caribbean Crisis of 1962, when, due to the deployment of Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba, a war with the use of atomic weapons almost started between the USSR and the USA;

so-called "détente" (1962–1979), the period of the Cold War, when a number of objective factors demonstrated to both sides the danger of increasing tension. First, after 1962 it became obvious that an atomic war, in which, most likely, there would be no winners, was more than real. Secondly, the psychological fatigue of the participants in the Cold War and the rest of the world from constant tension made itself felt and demanded a respite. Thirdly, the arms race also began to have an effect - the USSR was experiencing more and more obvious systemic economic problems, trying to keep up with its rival in building up its military potential. In this regard, the United States had difficulties as with the main allies, who were increasingly striving for peaceful development, in addition, the oil crisis was raging, in which the normalization of relations with the USSR, one of the leading suppliers of oil, was very helpful. But the "détente" was short-lived: both sides viewed it as a respite, and already in the mid-1970s, the confrontation began to grow: the United States began to develop scenarios for a nuclear war with the USSR, Moscow, in response, began to modernize its missile forces and missile defense;

the stage of the "evil empires" (1979-1985), on which the reality of armed conflict between the superpowers began to grow again. The catalyst for tension was the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan in 1979, which the United States did not fail to take advantage of, providing all kinds of support to the Afghans. The information war became very sharp, starting with the exchange of ignoring the Olympic Games, first in Moscow (1980), then in Los Angeles (1984), and ending with the use of the epithets “evil empire” (with the light hand of President Reagan) against each other. The military departments of both superpowers have begun a more detailed study of nuclear war scenarios and the improvement of both ballistic offensive weapons and missile defense systems;

end of cold war, change of the bipolar system of the world order by a unipolar system (1985-1991). The actual victory of the United States and its allies in the Cold War, associated with the political and economic transformations in the Soviet Union, known as perestroika and associated with the activities of Gorbachev. Experts continue to argue to what extent the subsequent collapse of the USSR and the disappearance of the socialist camp are due to objective reasons, primarily the economic inefficiency of the socialist model, and to what extent it is related to incorrect geopolitical strategic and tactical decisions of the Soviet leadership. However, the fact remains that after 1991 there is only one superpower in the world, which even has an unofficial award "For victory in the cold war" - the United States.

The results of the Cold War, which ended in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the entire socialist camp, can be divided into two categories. The first will include outcomes that are important for all mankind, since the Cold War was a global confrontation, in one way or another, directly or indirectly, almost all countries of the world were drawn into it. The second category is the results of the Cold War, which affected its two main participants, the USA and the USSR.

As for the results of the Cold War for the main adversaries, the two superpowers, in this respect the outcome of the confrontation is obvious. The USSR could not withstand the arms race, its economic system turned out to be uncompetitive, and the measures to modernize it were unsuccessful and eventually led to the collapse of the country. As a result, the socialist camp collapsed, the communist ideology itself turned out to be discredited, although the socialist regimes in the world survived and after a certain time their number began to increase (for example, in Latin America).

Russia, the legal successor of the USSR, retained its status as a nuclear power and its seat in the UN Security Council, but due to the extremely difficult domestic economic situation and the decline in the influence of the UN on real international politics, this does not look like a real achievement. Western values, primarily everyday and material, began to be actively introduced in the post-Soviet space, and the military power of the "heir" of the USSR has significantly decreased.

The United States, on the contrary, strengthened its position as a superpower, from that moment - the only superpower.

The original goal of the West in the Cold War, to prevent the spread of communist regimes and ideology around the world, has been achieved. The socialist camp was destroyed, the main enemy, the USSR, was defeated, and for a certain time the former Soviet republics fell under the political influence of the States.

However, after some time it became clear that during the confrontation between the two superpowers and the subsequent celebration of America's victory, a potential new superpower, China, appeared in the world. However, relations with China are far from the degree of tension from the Cold War, and besides, this is the next page in the history of international relations. Meanwhile, the United States, which created the most powerful military machine in the world during the arms race, received an effective tool to protect its interests and even impose them anywhere in the world and, by and large, regardless of the opinion of the international community. Thus, a unipolar model of the world has been established, which allows one superpower to use the necessary resources for its own benefit.

After graduation Second World War, which has become the largest and most violent conflict in the entire human history, a confrontation arose between the countries of the communist camp on the one hand and the Western capitalist countries on the other, between the two superpowers of that time, the USSR and the USA. The Cold War can be briefly described as a rivalry for dominance in the new post-war world.

The main cause of the Cold War was the insoluble ideological contradictions between the two models of society, socialist and capitalist. The West feared the strengthening of the USSR. The absence of a common enemy among the victorious countries, as well as the ambitions of political leaders, played their role.

Historians distinguish the following stages of the Cold War:

March 5, 1946 - 1953 The beginning of the Cold War was marked by Churchill's speech, delivered in the spring of 1946 in Fulton, in which the idea of creating an alliance of Anglo-Saxon countries to fight communism was proposed. The goal of the United States was an economic victory over the USSR, as well as the achievement of military superiority. In fact, the Cold War began earlier, but by the spring of 1946, due to the USSR's refusal to withdraw troops from Iran, the situation seriously escalated.

1953 - 1962 During this period of the Cold War, the world was on the brink of nuclear conflict. Despite some improvement in relations between the Soviet Union and the United States during the "thaw" Khrushchev, it was at this stage that the anti-communist uprising in Hungary, the events in the GDR and, earlier, in Poland, as well as the Suez crisis took place. International tension increased after the development and successful testing of the USSR in 1957 of an intercontinental ballistic missile. But, the threat of nuclear war receded, as the Soviet Union now had the opportunity to retaliate against US cities. This period of relations between the superpowers ended with the Berlin and Caribbean crises of 1961 and 1962, respectively. It was possible to resolve the Caribbean crisis only during personal negotiations between the heads of state Khrushchev and Kennedy. Also, as a result of the negotiations, a number of agreements on the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons were signed.

1962 - 1979 The period was marked by an arms race that undermined the economies of rival countries. The development and production of new types of weapons required incredible resources. Despite the presence of tension in relations between the USSR and the USA, agreements on the limitation of strategic weapons are signed. A joint space program "Soyuz-Apollo" is being developed. However, by the beginning of the 80s, the USSR began to lose in the arms race.

1979 - 1987 Relations between the USSR and the USA are again aggravated after the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan. In 1983 the United States deployed ballistic missiles at bases in Italy, Denmark, England, the FRG, and Belgium. An anti-space defense system is being developed. The USSR reacts to the actions of the West by withdrawing from the Geneva talks. During this period, the missile attack warning system is in constant combat readiness.

1987 - 1991 M. Gorbachev's coming to power in the USSR in 1985 entailed not only global changes within the country, but also radical changes in foreign policy, called "new political thinking". Ill-conceived reforms finally undermined the economy of the Soviet Union, which led to the country's virtual defeat in the Cold War.

The end of the Cold War was caused by the weakness of the Soviet economy, its inability to support the arms race any longer, as well as the pro-Soviet communist regimes. Anti-war speeches in various parts of the world also played a certain role. The results of the Cold War were depressing for the USSR. The reunification of Germany in 1990 became a symbol of the West's victory.

As a result, after the USSR was defeated in the Cold War, a unipolar model of the world was formed with the US as the dominant superpower. However, there are other consequences of the Cold War. This is the rapid development of science and technology, primarily military. So, the Internet was originally created as a communication system for the American army.

The Cold War between the USSR and the USA began in 1946 and lasted until 1989. The term was proposed by journalists to describe the opposition of ideological systems.

The schedule of international relations manifests itself in the form of jumps that determine the maximum proximity to a nuclear war, and periods of smoothing sharp corners.

Background of the conflict

The victory over fascist Germany in World War II forced the USSR, the USA and Western countries to return to the problem of the conflict between the capitalist and socialist political system of the state. The existing contradictions were intensified by the ambitions of politicians who want to strengthen their position, taking advantage of the weakened state of most countries after a bloody war.

The former allies feared the strengthening of the positions of the Soviet Union, the spread of ideological and political theories that provide for the transfer of private property to state property. Churchill's speech in Fulton is considered the official start of the conflict. On March 5, 1946, the politician, in response to the refusal of the Soviet Union to withdraw military forces from Iran, proposed creating an alliance of Anglo-Saxon countries to oppose the ideas of communism. The proposal received support from the United States, which pursued the goal of obtaining military and economic superiority over the enemy.

Main periods of confrontation

The British Prime Minister's statement made it possible to create a military alliance of Western countries, supported by the United States. The emergence of NATO heated up relations between the countries, forcing the leaders of the Soviet Union to actively seek allies. During attempts to establish an ideological balance on the political map of the world, a bloody Civil War in China was provoked, dividing the country into 2 camps.

NATO used a policy of containment:

imposing economic sanctions on the enemy;
encouraging the complete cessation of trade relations with the former ally.

Such measures radically affected the financial tables of even the average Soviet family, not only on the national budget.

The extremely tense years of the Cold War covered the period from 1953-1962, the reason was creation of the Warsaw Pact, which was joined by the countries of Eastern Europe, supporting the USSR. The main prerequisites for the aggravation of international relations were the Suez crisis and anti-communist uprisings in Poland and Hungary. At this stage, the threat of nuclear war was characterized as the most likely scenario for the development of events.

The threat of military action weakened after the demonstration of military force by the USSR in the form of an intercontinental ballistic missile launch. The tests meant a hint at the country's ability to strike back. The end of this period came with the Berlin Crisis.

The termination of active intelligence activities in the territory of West Berlin was not envisaged, which aroused Khrushchev's suspicions.

The Secretary General was also concerned about the increasing cases of poaching of Soviet scientists; personal negotiations between the heads of the two countries saved the world from a nuclear war. The main outcome of the meeting was the erection of a wall dividing Germany.

Arms race and strained relations

The signed treaties on limiting the use of nuclear weapons did not force the US and the USSR to abandon the development and production of new types of weapons. First stage a new round of international relations was manifested by the Cuban crisis.

The deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba could have resulted in the possibility of striking any city in America, but the parties agreed on non-interference in Cuban politics and the withdrawal of troops from Turkey, which was supposed to mark the removal of the "hand from the red button."

The concept of "cold war" refers to the battle for space.

During the period of declining tension in relations, the first joint Soyuz-Apollo program was developed. Some analysts argued that the launch of the facility could mean a choice of course for peace, but the appearance of the Soviet military in Afghanistan again exacerbated the situation. The retaliatory step is the deployment in 1983 of American ballistic missiles in European countries. The military influence of the United States covers Denmark, England, Italy, which forced the USSR to withdraw from European negotiations and begin work on projects that provide anti-space defense.

By this time, the USSR began to lose in the arms race, the imposition of sanctions by European countries helped to strengthen the blow to the country's economy.

Perestroika crisis

The date of M. Gorbachev's coming to power is associated in history with global changes in the internal and foreign policy. The definition of "cold war" at that time meant relentless bombardment of the economy of the Soviet Union, which could no longer provide support to other socialist countries.

Ill-conceived additional reforms aggravated the situation, which is why the Warsaw Pact Organization was dissolved, and Soviet troops were withdrawn from European countries.

Attempts to refresh the ideological idea in order to make it still serve the good of the state failed. The inability of the economy to support the communist regime and the arms race was an admission of defeat in the Cold War. The fall of the Berlin Wall became a European symbol of victory. The depressing consequence of the confrontation was the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Results of the Cold War

The defeat of the USSR allowed the second superpower to determine what characteristics the political and ideological model of the world should have. Officially, the end of the Cold War is defined as 1989, but the consequences of the ideological confrontation caused irreparable blows to the country's economy, from which it could not recover:

Former members of the socialist camp became members of the European Union.
The economy was paralyzed.
Western values, the level of technical development and social security have increased the outflow of leading specialists.

A plus is the huge funds invested in scientific projects that contributed to the rapid development of science and technology, for example, at that time the Internet, so popular in modern society, arose.

The main events of international politics in the second half of the 20th century were determined by the cold war between the two superpowers - the USSR and the USA.

Its consequences are felt to this day, and moments of crisis in relations between Russia and the West are often called the echoes of the Cold War.

What started the cold war

The term "cold war" belongs to the pen of the prose writer and publicist George Orwell, who used this phrase in 1945. However, the beginning of the conflict is associated with the speech of the former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, delivered by him in 1946 in the presence of American President Harry Truman.

Churchill declared that an "Iron Curtain" would be erected in the middle of Europe, to the east of which there was no democracy.

Churchill's speech had the following premises:

the establishment of communist governments in the states liberated by the Red Army from fascism;
the activation of the left underground in Greece (which led to civil war);
the strengthening of the communists in such Western European countries as Italy and France.

Soviet diplomacy also took advantage of this, laying claims to the Turkish straits and Libya.

The main signs of the beginning of the cold war

In the first months after the victorious May 1945, in the wake of sympathy for the eastern ally in the anti-Hitler coalition, Soviet films were freely shown in Europe, and the attitude of the press towards the USSR was neutral or benevolent. In the Soviet Union, for a while, they forgot about the stamps that represented the West as the kingdom of the bourgeoisie.

With the onset of the Cold War, cultural contacts were curtailed, and the rhetoric of confrontation prevailed in diplomacy and the media. Briefly and clearly, the peoples were told who their enemy was.

All over the world there were bloody skirmishes of the allies of one side or another, and the Cold War participants themselves unleashed an arms race. This is the name given to the build-up in the arsenals of Soviet and American military weapons of mass destruction, primarily nuclear weapons.

Military spending drained state budgets and slowed down post-war economic recovery.

Causes of the Cold War - briefly and point by point

There were several reasons for the outbreak of conflict:

Ideological - the insolubility of contradictions between societies built on different political foundations.
Geopolitical - the parties feared each other's dominance.
Economic - the desire of the West and the communists to use economic resources opposite side.

Stages of the Cold War

The chronology of events is divided into 5 main periods

The first stage - 1946-1955

During the first 9 years, a compromise was still possible between the victors of fascism, which both sides were looking for.

The United States strengthened its position in Europe thanks to the Marshall Plan economic assistance program. Western countries united in NATO in 1949, and the Soviet Union successfully tested nuclear weapons.

In 1950, the war broke out in Korea, where both the USSR and the USA participated to varying degrees. Stalin dies, but the Kremlin's diplomatic position does not change significantly.

The second stage - 1955-1962

Communists face opposition from the populations of Hungary, Poland and the GDR. In 1955, an alternative to the Western Alliance appeared - the Warsaw Pact Organization.

The arms race is moving to the stage of creating intercontinental missiles. side effect military development was space exploration, the launch of the first satellite and the first cosmonaut of the USSR. The Soviet bloc is strengthened at the expense of Cuba, where Fidel Castro comes to power.

Third stage - 1962-1979

After the Caribbean crisis, the parties are trying to curb the military race. In 1963, an agreement was signed to ban atomic tests in air, space and under water. In 1964, the conflict begins in Vietnam, provoked by the desire of the West to defend this country from leftist rebels.

In the early 1970s, the world entered the era of "détente". Its main characteristic is the desire for peaceful coexistence. The parties limit strategic offensive weapons and prohibit biological and chemical weapons.

The peace diplomacy of Leonid Brezhnev in 1975 culminated in the signing by 33 countries in Helsinki of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. At the same time, the Soyuz-Apollo joint program was launched with the participation of Soviet cosmonauts and American astronauts.

Fourth stage - 1979-1987

In 1979, the Soviet Union sent an army to Afghanistan to install a puppet government. In the wake of aggravated contradictions, the United States refused to ratify the SALT-2 treaty, signed earlier by Brezhnev and Carter. The West is boycotting the Olympics in Moscow.

President Ronald Reagan showed himself as a tough anti-Soviet politician by launching the SDI program - strategic defense initiatives. American missiles are deployed in close proximity to the territory of the Soviet Union.

Fifth period - 1987-1991

This stage was given the definition of "new political thinking".

The transfer of power to Mikhail Gorbachev and the beginning of perestroika in the USSR meant the renewal of contacts with the West and the gradual abandonment of ideological intransigence.

Crises of the Cold War

The crises of the Cold War in history are called several periods of the greatest aggravation of relations between rival parties. Two of them - the Berlin crises of 1948-1949 and 1961 - associated with the formation of three political entities on the site of the former Reich - the GDR, the FRG and West Berlin.

In 1962, the USSR deployed nuclear missiles in Cuba, threatening the security of the United States - these events were called the Caribbean Crisis. Subsequently, Khrushchev dismantled the missiles in exchange for the Americans withdrawing the missiles from Turkey.

When and how did the Cold War end?

In 1989, the Americans and Russians announced the end of the Cold War. In fact, this meant the dismantling of the socialist regimes of Eastern Europe, right up to Moscow itself. Germany united, the Department of Internal Affairs collapsed, and then the USSR itself.

Who won the cold war

In January 1992, George W. Bush declared: "With the help of the Lord God, America won the Cold War!" His jubilation at the end of the confrontation was not shared by many residents of the countries of the former USSR, where a time of economic upheaval and criminal chaos began.

In 2007, a bill was submitted to the US Congress establishing a medal for participation in the Cold War. For the American establishment, the theme of victory over communism remains important element political propaganda.

Results

Why the socialist camp turned out to be weaker than the capitalist one and what was its significance for humanity are the main final questions of the Cold War. The consequences of these events are being felt even in the 21st century. The collapse of the left forces led to economic growth, democratic reforms, a surge of nationalism and religious intolerance in the world.

Along with this, the armaments accumulated during these years are preserved, and the governments of Russia and Western countries act largely on the basis of the concepts and stereotypes learned during the armed confrontation.

The Cold War, which lasted 45 years, is for historians the most important process of the second half of the twentieth century, which determined the outlines of the modern world.