Write an account of how relations between the USSR and the
Western Allies changed between 1945 and 1946.
The USSR and the western Allies relationship changed when Harry
S. Truman President of America dropped the atomic bombs on
Nagasaki and Hiroshima on the 6th and 9th of August 1945.
In the Potsdam Conference July 945, the Grand Alliance worked to
try and find a way they could all get what they wanted. Harry S.
Truman and Clement Attlee (Prime Minister of Britain in 1945) both
wanted independence and self-determination for the countries of
Eastern Europe which Stalin was trying to take over so the USSR
felt safe. But the USSR’s Red Army occupied most of Eastern
Europe and the war against Japan was going on, so the West had
to accept the situation as it was. The Long Telegram was where the
US embassy in Moscow began to report back on developments
within the USSR. On 22 February 1946 George Kennan, second in
command at the embassy sent a report back to the USA. He
believed that the Soviets wanted to spread the USSR’s influence as
widely as possible. The USSR saw the USA as the enemy. Any
attempt at cooperation between them would fail. The Long
telegram, which was 8000 words long, confirmed President
Truman’s fears and had a large influence on his future approach
towards the USSR. ANother reason why tensions rose between
East and West was Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech on 6 March
1946 during a visit to the USA. He said the USSR was attempting to
spread its influence across the rest of Europe and increase its
power. He also stated that an invisible line (The Iron Curtain) had
split Europe in two between East and West. TRuman was at
Churchill’s side when he made this speech and agreed with his
views. In Moscow, the speech was seen as a deliberate
misinterpretation of the USSR’s aims, which added to the hostile
relations.
Joseph Stalin had known about the atomic bomb which he had
been informed about by his spies, but still did not tell Truman
Western Allies changed between 1945 and 1946.
The USSR and the western Allies relationship changed when Harry
S. Truman President of America dropped the atomic bombs on
Nagasaki and Hiroshima on the 6th and 9th of August 1945.
In the Potsdam Conference July 945, the Grand Alliance worked to
try and find a way they could all get what they wanted. Harry S.
Truman and Clement Attlee (Prime Minister of Britain in 1945) both
wanted independence and self-determination for the countries of
Eastern Europe which Stalin was trying to take over so the USSR
felt safe. But the USSR’s Red Army occupied most of Eastern
Europe and the war against Japan was going on, so the West had
to accept the situation as it was. The Long Telegram was where the
US embassy in Moscow began to report back on developments
within the USSR. On 22 February 1946 George Kennan, second in
command at the embassy sent a report back to the USA. He
believed that the Soviets wanted to spread the USSR’s influence as
widely as possible. The USSR saw the USA as the enemy. Any
attempt at cooperation between them would fail. The Long
telegram, which was 8000 words long, confirmed President
Truman’s fears and had a large influence on his future approach
towards the USSR. ANother reason why tensions rose between
East and West was Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech on 6 March
1946 during a visit to the USA. He said the USSR was attempting to
spread its influence across the rest of Europe and increase its
power. He also stated that an invisible line (The Iron Curtain) had
split Europe in two between East and West. TRuman was at
Churchill’s side when he made this speech and agreed with his
views. In Moscow, the speech was seen as a deliberate
misinterpretation of the USSR’s aims, which added to the hostile
relations.
Joseph Stalin had known about the atomic bomb which he had
been informed about by his spies, but still did not tell Truman
