W2: The Initial Stage of the Cold War: The Origins of the Cold War

The Origins of the Cold War
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Introduction
The Cold War began as a contest between the USA and the Soviet Union after the Second World War. The USA and Britain joined forces with the Soviet Union in their war against Germany during the Second World War. The US developed the atomic bomb in 1945 and it was first used in a war situation in Hiroshima, Japan in the same year. Three days later, the same bomb was launched in Nagasaki, Japan. This was the only use of nuclear weaponry in armed conflict in the world and none has been recorded since then. However, in 1949, Russia developed their first atomic bomb and this sent fear across the globe. Their former allies felt threatened partly because of their approach of communism to governance. The US believed that they were helping Russia in the war to secure freedom for their people and the rest of the world from the dictatorial rule of Adolf Hitler. The idea of Russia developing a nuclear weapon preceded distrust amongst its allies given that Joseph Stalin had entered into a non-aggression pact with Adolf Hitler but still went to war with Germany. It was rather difficult for the allies to trust Russia with nuclear weaponry in their possession.[Schlesinger, Arthur. "Origins of the Cold War." Foreign Affairs 46, no. 1 (1967): 22-52.] [Schlesinger, Arthur. "Origins of the Cold War." Foreign Affairs 46, no. 1 (1967): 22-52.] [Schlesinger, Arthur. "Origins of the Cold War." Foreign Affairs 46, no. 1 (1967): 22-52.]
Truman and Stalin Ideologies
Truman made a firm statement regarding the commitment of the United States on the idea of developing nuclear weaponry and working towards establishing control systems for the ownership and use of nuclear technology. The political system of the United States was and is still based on democracy and their government was installed by the citizens through an open and fair election. It was this kind of freedom that the Americans believed they were fighting to preserve. It was the purpose of the government of the United States to engage in the war as their way of protecting the individual freedoms of the American people. This was also supported by the capitalist mentality in Truman and the US at large. There was fear if the world would have to bow at the superiority of a nation such as Russia that does not believe in capitalism and puts the interests of the society ahead of the individual. The implication of this socialist approach to governance is that there is no idea of a free market where individuals compete for dominance in the open system of markets. In this case, the government owns all the essential resources such as land and the industries. Stalin developed the communism system of governance from the time he took over power from Lenin in the year 1924. At the time of the war, the US had already seen more than five elec...