Cold war is a state of tension between two big powers. It is used to describe the period which emerged after the Second World War. When the Second World War ended, both the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic were clearly the masters of the world. The main cause of this tension was the difference in the opinion of these superpowers as the US was in the favor of Capitalism and the USSR was in the favor of Socialism. The hostility continued for the next 45 years. It is not an actual or direct war but is a diplomatic war fought with potent weapons like formation military alliances, spying, propaganda, and economic and military alliances.
The US was of the ideology that all industries, business and agriculture should be owned by private people or firms. Competition between rival factories or shops or firms will cause the prices to fall and will make them more efficient. The USSR on the other hand believed that everything belongs to the state and should be run by the government on behalf of the people. A classless society can be achieved by overthrowing capitalism by revolution.
Another cause for the cold war was that both the nations wanted domination over the world as both the nations were considered to be super powers. They also wanted control over the entire Germany as it was divided into two parts on the basis of ideology they followed. This war between the superpowers influenced the foreign policies, political institutions, and economic systems in almost every corner of the world.
Each side thought that the other one was trying to rule the world and neither of them would give up and it was feared that another war would erupt. This time it could have been a nuclear war. as both the nations were well equipped in ammunition, and it would destroy the whole planet. The countries began to form alliances to protect themselves. This led to the formation of NATO and Warsaw Pact.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was established by a treaty in 1949 which established a system of collective defense whereby it member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. Its original members were – United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Denmark, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg. Later Greece and West Germany also joined.
The Warsaw Pact was the socialist response to NATO and was signed on May 1, 1955 in Warsaw Poland. Military treaty, which bound its signatories to come to the aid of the others, should any one of them be the victim of foreign aggression. Its original members were – Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, the USSR, and the Czechoslovak Republic.
The cold war ended in 1990 when the soviet was defeated from Afghanistan and the Soviet Union was divided into different countries.
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