The USA and the Soviet Union followed policies to strengthen themselves and to weaken the other. This period of uneasy tension and political instability is known as the Cold War.
Cold War :The Emergence of Two Superpower
- The USA and the Soviet Union had fought together during the Second World War. But by the end of the war, ideological differences began to appear between both nations.
- While the USA was following the capitalist model of the economy, Soviet Union was following communism. This resulted in ideological differences between both countries.
- Although both countries did not engage in an actual fight with each other, there was uneasy political tension between the two. Both countries followed policies to strengthen themselves and to weaken the other. This period of uneasy tension and political instability is known as the Cold War.
- Both countries formed alliances and began piling up nuclear weapons. There were economic warfare, propaganda, and proxy wars between the two countries. Although the USA and the Soviet Union never fought a war with each other, they were extremely hostile to the other.
Two blocs that were formed during the Cold War
The Democratic and Capitalist Bloc
It was led by the USA. The bloc comprised Britain, France, Italy, Canada, Australia, Greece, Pakistan, and Turkey. It was also known as the Western Bloc. The countries in this bloc believed in liberal democracy and granting of all rights to the citizens. The Western Bloc criticized the communist ideology.
The Communist Bloc
This bloc was led by USSR. It was also known as the Eastern bloc of the Soviet Bloc. They criticized the capitalist economy as they believed that it was against the interests of the working and poor classes. Communists also criticized the western style of democracy as they felt that it was meant only for the rich and the upper-middle class. Countries that were part of this bloc were Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Albani
Thus, a period of uneasy tension followed after the Second World War. However, the effort was made by every country (involved in the politics of the Cold War) not to engage in direct war with a country of the opposing camp.
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