History Optional (Cold war) by Shivlal Gupta

Model Answer

Question #1. Analyze the key events, policies, and ideologies that defined the Cold War era and their implications on the world order.  10 marks (150 words)

Approach

• The question focuses on the dimension1) the key events, policies, and ideologies that defined the Cold War era;2) their implications on the world order.
• Introduction (Summary of key demand of the question, along with necessary facts).
• Conclusion by summing up the gist of the answer.

The Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc, from 1947 to 1991. It was marked by competition and confrontation in political, economic, military, ideological, and cultural spheres.

The key events that defined the Cold War era include:

• The end of World War II: The end of World War II left the United States and the Soviet Union as the two most powerful countries in the world. They had different ideologies and goals, and this led to a period of tension and rivalry.
• The Truman Doctrine: The Truman Doctrine was a policy of the United States to provide military and economic assistance to countries threatened by communism. It was announced by President Harry Truman in 1947 in response to the Soviet Union's attempt to take over Greece and Turkey.
• The Marshall Plan: The Marshall Plan was a program of economic assistance to European countries after World War II. It was announced by President Harry Truman in 1947 and helped to rebuild Europe's economy and prevent the spread of communism.
• The Berlin Blockade: The Berlin Blockade was a Soviet attempt to cut off West Berlin from the rest of Germany in 1948. The United States and its allies responded by airlifting supplies to West Berlin, and the blockade was eventually lifted.
• The Korean War: The Korean War was a war between North Korea and South Korea from 1950 to 1953. The United States and its allies supported South Korea, while the Soviet Union and China supported North Korea. The war ended in a stalemate, but it helped to solidify the Cold War divide between the United States and the Soviet Union.
• The Cuban Missile Crisis: The Cuban Missile Crisis was a 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1962 over the Soviet Union's placement of nuclear missiles in Cuba. The crisis brought the two countries to the brink of nuclear war, but it was eventually resolved through a negotiated settlement.
• The Vietnam War: The Vietnam War was a war between North Vietnam and South Vietnam from 1954 to 1975. The United States and its allies supported South Vietnam, while the Soviet Union and China supported North Vietnam. The war was a long and costly conflict, and it eventually ended with the victory of North Vietnam.

The key policies that defined the Cold War era include:

• Containment: Containment was a policy of the United States to prevent the spread of communism. It was developed by the Truman administration in 1947 and was based on the idea that the United States should use its economic and military power to contain communism within its existing borders.
• Deterrence: Deterrence was a policy of the United States to prevent the Soviet Union from attacking the United States or its allies. It was based on the idea that the United States should have enough nuclear weapons to deter the Soviet Union from attacking, even if the Soviet Union struck first.
• Mutual assured destruction (MAD): MAD was a doctrine of nuclear deterrence that was developed by the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1960s. It was based on the idea that neither country could win a nuclear war, so neither country would start one.

The key ideologies that defined the Cold War era include:

• Capitalism: Capitalism is an economic system based on private ownership of the means of production. It is characterized by free markets, competition, and profit.
• Communism: Communism is an economic system based on the common ownership of the means of production. It is characterized by a planned economy, equality, and social justice.

Implications on World Order:

• Bipolar World Order: The Cold War created a bipolar world order with the U.S. and the Soviet Union as the two dominant superpowers, influencing global politics and shaping international relations.
• Proxy Conflicts: The superpowers engaged in proxy conflicts in various regions, leading to instability and armed conflicts in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East.
• Arms Race and Deterrence: The arms race led to the development of massive nuclear arsenals. The policy of MAD and nuclear deterrence prevented direct conflict between the superpowers.
• Dismantling of Empires: The Cold War contributed to the dismantling of colonial empires as newly independent nations aligned with either superpower to gain support.
• Technological Advancements: The space race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union led to significant advancements in technology and the exploration of outer space.
• Global Spread of Ideologies: The superpowers competed to influence and win over other nations, leading to the global spread of both capitalism and communism.
• Human Rights and Ideological Critique: The Cold War era saw ideological critiques of each superpower's human rights abuses and political repression.

The implications of the Cold War era on the world order are still being felt today. The Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union led to a period of global tension and instability. It also led to the development of new weapons technologies, such as nuclear weapons, which have the potential to destroy the world. The Cold War also had a significant impact on the development of the United Nations, which was founded in 1945 to prevent future wars. The United Nations has played a major role in maintaining peace and security in the world since the end of the Cold War. The Cold War was a time of great change and upheaval in the world. It had a profound impact on the global order, and its effects are still being felt today.

Question #2. The origin of the Cold War started can be traced back to the Bolshevik Revolution’. Comment. 15 marks (250 words)

Approach:

• Briefly introduce the Cold War.
• Discuss how origin of the Cold War started can be traced back to the Bolshevik Revolution.
• Conclusion

Hints:

The Cold War originated in the breakdown of relations between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc, in the years 1945–1949

The origin of the Cold War started can be traced back to the Bolshevik Revolution:

• While most historians trace its origins to the period immediately following World War II, others argue that it began with the October Revolution in Russia in 1917 when the Bolsheviks took power.
• In 1919 Lenin stated that his new state was surrounded by a "hostile capitalist encirclement", and he viewed diplomacy as a weapon that should be used in order to keep the Soviet Union's enemies divided. He began with a new Communist International ("Comintern"), based in Moscow, which was designed to plan for revolutionary upheavals abroad. It was ineffective—Communist uprisings all failed in Germany, Hungary and elsewhere.
• Historian Max Beloff argues that the Soviets saw "no prospect of permanent peace", with the 1922 Soviet Constitution proclaiming:Since the time of the formation of the soviet republics, the states of the world have divided into two camps: the camp of capitalism and the camp of There - in the camp of capitalism - national enmity and inequality, colonial slavery, and chauvinism, national oppression and pogroms, imperialist brutalities and wars. Here - in the camp of socialism - mutual confidence and peace, national freedom and equality, a dwelling together in peace and the brotherly collaboration of peoples.
• According to British historian Christopher Sutton:In what some have called the First Cold War, from Britain's intervention in the Russian Civil War in 1918 to its uneasy alliance with the Soviet Union against the Axis powers in 1941, British distrust of the revolutionary and regicidal Bolsheviks resulted in domestic, foreign, and colonial policies aimed at resisting the spread of This conflict after 1945 took on new battlefields, new weapons, new players, and a greater intensity, but it was still fundamentally a conflict against Soviet imperialism (real and imagined).
• The idea of long-term continuity is a minority scholarly view that has been challenged. Frank Ninkovich writes:As for the two cold wars thesis, the chief problem is that the two periods are To be sure, they were joined together by enduring ideological hostility, but in the post-World War I years Bolshevism was not a geopolitical menace. After World War II, in contrast, the Soviet Union was a superpower that combined ideological antagonism with the kind of geopolitical threat posed by Germany and Japan in the Second World War. Even with more amicable relations in the 1920s, it is conceivable that post-1945 relations would have turned out much the same.

The origins derive from diplomatic (and occasional military) confrontations stretching back decades, followed by the issue of political boundaries in Central Europe and non-democratic control of the East by the Soviet Army. In the 1940s came economic issues (especially the Marshall Plan) and then the first major military confrontation, with a threat of a hot war, in the Berlin Blockade of 1948– 1949. By 1949, the lines were sharply drawn and the Cold War was largely in place in Europe.Outside Europe, the starting points vary, but the conflict centered on the US' development of an informal empire in Southeast Asia in the mid-1940s