REACTION OF THE WEST

MARSHALL AND TRUMAN

WHO?

THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE

What was it…..It was very simple…..

Whereas before WW2 the USA had been isolationist isolationist and not been involved in Europe….NOW……

Because of the fear of Communism the USA was prepared to intervene throughout the world to protect democracy against communism….$400 million in aid to Greece and Turkey

By lending equipment, advice etc ( and eventually military force)

The main aim was to stop communism spreading further; conflict is democracy vs. totalitarianism

This policy was called CONTAINMENTCONTAINMENT

Was Truman telling the truth?

Some Republicans expressed the fear that Truman’s monetary and military actions would lead to war with Russia

Although the Greek Communist had been getting help from the Yugoslav Communists, there was no aid from Stalin who had promised in the Yalta agreement to leave Greece to Britain

The Greek and Turkish governments were both corrupt and non-democratic and unlikely to change despite American intervention

THE MARSHALL PLAN 1947(Marshall Aid)

What was it?

• An American response to the poverty and hardship in post war Europe

• Who was Marshall?

•An American General and American Secretary of State, sent to assess the economic state of Europe, later to become Secretary of State

Details

Economies in ruins

Shortages of goods

Bread still rationed

Coal shortages – in GB electricity cuts each day

It was thought that these were the conditions in which communism thrived

WHY?

Marshall’s reaction

• Lend $13 billion to Europe = $100 billion today

• Congress against it UNTIL Czechoslovakia became Communist and death of Jan Masaryk

• 1948 – Plan passes by Congress – to last four years

What a nice gesture by the Americans.

• Yes BUT…..

• The aid came in the form of goods made by American firms

• So there was an element of American self-interest to prevent another depression in USA

• Aid was offered to Soviet Union and satellite states as well

And Stalin

• He hated Marshall Aid!!• Forbade Eastern European countries from having

anything to do with it• Regarded as anti-Communist• Feared that it might weaken his hold on Eastern

Bloc and Eastern countries would swing to the US dollar

• Soviet alternative was Comecom (Council of Mutual Economic Assistance) starting in January 1949