145 



With the cessation of hostilities in Europe and the elimination of 

 the Nazi threat, the Soviet Union gave priority to its historical strug- 

 gle with the capitalist world, the leading member of which was the 

 United States. By 1047. Eastern Europe was under full Soviet domi- 

 nation : the Soviet Union's subsequent refusal to accept Marshall plan 

 aid for herself and her satellites decisively ended the wartime alliance 

 and there began the period known as the cold war. The subsequent 

 struggle short of war pervaded all sectors of society in both the United 

 States and the Soviet Union, including the scientific and technical 

 communities, as the two opponents attempted to prove the superiority 

 of their respective systems. 



The Soviet threat to Western Europe, together with the threat of 

 economic breakdown and resulting political instability, led to Presi- 

 dent Truman's initiatives of the Marshall plan and the Truman 

 doctrine. These moves were deemed necessary because conditions in 

 Western Europe presented a power vacuum between the United States 

 and the Soviet Union. The United States feared that Soviet forces 

 would enter Western Europe, especially through Germany, where they 

 already had a foothold. Consequently, U.S. diplomatic objectives 

 were aimed at strengthening Western Europe politically and eco- 

 nomically until this power vacuum could be filled. 



THE MARSHALL PLAN 



The concepts of the Marshall plan were announced by Secretary 

 of State George C. Marshall on June 5, 1947. The basic principle of 

 American foreign policy was to foster closer collaboration among 

 European nations. Further help from the United States therefore 

 should be given only after these nations had agreed together upon 

 their basic needs and had organized to make effective use of aid from 

 the United States. Such aid was in the U.S. national interest, said 

 Secretary Marshall, because the modern system of industrial division 

 of labor in Europe was in danger of breaking down with a consequent 

 demoralizing effect on the world, the generation of disturbances, and 

 undesirable consequences for the U.S. economy. 



The Marshal] plan continued in operation until 1951. In addition 

 to the financial support it provided, the plan also stimulated European 

 nations to organize for economic development through the Organisa- 

 tion for European Economic Co-operation. By the end of this remark- 

 able venture in international aid. the industrial outputs of the United 

 Kingdom. West Germany. France, and other nations of Western 

 Europe had increased substantially over the levels of 1947, ranging 

 from an increase of 35 percent for the United Kingdom to 334 per- 

 cent for West Germany. 



THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE 



On November 17. 1947, President Truman announced to a joint ses- 

 sion of Congress that he would propose a long-range European re- 

 covery program to support the freedom-loving countries of West- 

 ern Europe in their endeavors to remain free. A few weeks later in 

 his foreign aid message of December 19. 1947. the President proposed 

 major U.S. aid to Europe, coupling this with the Marshal plan con- 



