After almost a century of peace, feelings of uneasiness and distrust settled between the two countries after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 when the Communists gained control of Russia, established the Soviet Union. The newly developed Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, known as the USSR, declared ideological war against all western capitalist nations. Disapproving of this new type of government, the U.S. tried to intervene, sending over 10,000 troops from 1918-1920. They also refused to officially recognize the state until 1933. (Encarta 1997, 1) Fighting together against Germany during World War II created an alliance, although it did not last for long. The friendship rapidly began to dissipate due to disagreements over the reconstruction of Eastern Europe. The Russian leader, Joseph Stalin, wanted to increase his hold on the area and institut

powers came frighteningly close to nuclear war. President Kennedy threatened to retaliate with nuclear weapons and forced the new Russian leader, Nikita Khrushchev, to back down and dismantle the missiles as well as promise not to invade China (Johnston 1998, "Cold War.").

The Cold War was an intense conflict that lasted for almost 45 years. It began with trying to prevent the spread of Communism, and developed into things such as the race for nuclear weapons, "Star Wars", and several close conflicts such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Korean War. The Cold War was a frightening period in history, there was always the possibility of disaster hanging in the air.

sides failed to honor promises and agreements previously made. The two countries had gone from "wartime allies to bitter enemies." (Cayton, Perry, Reed, and Winkler, 1999, 535)

e Communism upon its people, and it was up to the U.S to lead the fight against it. Feelings of distrust heightened when both !

In 1945, the U.S wanted to open Europe for free capitalist trade, but the USSR disagreed. The Truman Doctrine was issued in March of 1947, which stated that the U.S. would "defend all free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or outside pressures." Russia was on a mission for world conquest, and the United States vowed to intervene wherever communism threatened (Cayton, Perry, Reed, and Winkler, 1999, 535). The term "cold war" was first used

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 977
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)