Skip to main content

In post-WWII Europe, what was the Soviet Union doing that angered other countries?

In post-WWII Europe, many countries (including countries like the US that were not in Europe) were angry at the Soviet Union because the Soviets were trying to control as much territory as they possibly could.  Some people within the countries they controlled were angry because they did not want to be communist and/or dominated by the USSR.  Other countries were angry because they did not want communism to spread across Europe.


After WWII, the Soviet...

In post-WWII Europe, many countries (including countries like the US that were not in Europe) were angry at the Soviet Union because the Soviets were trying to control as much territory as they possibly could.  Some people within the countries they controlled were angry because they did not want to be communist and/or dominated by the USSR.  Other countries were angry because they did not want communism to spread across Europe.


After WWII, the Soviet Union wanted to control as much of Europe (and particularly Eastern Europe) as they could.  They wanted this for two reasons.  First, they felt that it was important to spread communism across the globe because they believed communism was the right ideology for all people.  Second, they wanted to have a large buffer zone of countries they controlled between them and any enemy powers.  They did not want an enemy right on their borders the way Germany had been in WWII so they wanted “satellite nations” between them and the West so that it would be much harder for any country to invade them.


When the Soviets started to try to dominate other countries, many countries became angry.  The people within some of the countries that got dominated were angry.  Many did not want to be forced to live under communist rule.  Millions of people like this ended up fleeing to Western Europe.  Others (notably in Yugoslavia) liked communism but did not want the Soviet Union to control them.  Finally, the countries of the West were angry.  They did not like communism and did not want it to spread.  They wanted the Soviets to allow people in every country to vote for their own form of government, but the USSR refused.  The countries of the West feared that the Soviets were trying, in essence, to take over the world and that made them angry.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What are some external and internal conflicts that Montag has in Fahrenheit 451?

 Montag, the protagonist of Fahrenheit 451, faces both external and internal conflicts throughout the novel. Some examples of these conflicts are: External Conflicts: Conflict with the society: Montag lives in a society that prohibits books and critical thinking. He faces opposition from the government and the people who enforce this law. Montag struggles to come to terms with the fact that his society is based on censorship and control. Conflict with his wife: Montag's wife, Mildred, is completely absorbed in the shallow and meaningless entertainment provided by the government. Montag's growing dissatisfaction with his marriage adds to his external conflict. Conflict with the fire captain: Montag's superior, Captain Beatty, is the personification of the oppressive regime that Montag is fighting against. Montag's struggle against Beatty represents his external conflict with the government. Internal Conflicts: Conflict with his own beliefs: Montag, at the beginning of th...
Post a Comment
Read more

In A People's History of the United States, why does Howard Zinn feel that Wilson made a flimsy argument for entering World War I?

"War is the health of the state," the radical writer Randolph Bourne said, in the midst of the First World War. Indeed, as the nations of Europe went to war in 1914, the governments flourished, patriotism bloomed, class struggle was stilled, and young men died in frightful numbers on the battlefields-often for a hundred yards of land, a line of trenches. -- Chapter 14, Page 350, A People's History of the United States Howard Zinn outlines his arguments for why World War I was fought in the opening paragraph of Chapter 14 (referenced above). The nationalism that was created by the Great War benefited the elite political and financial leadership of the various countries involved. Socialism, which was gaining momentum in Europe, as was class struggle, took a backseat to mobilizing for war. Zinn believes that World War I was fought for the gain of the industrial capitalists of Europe in a competition for capital and resources. He states that humanity itself was punished by t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Where did Atticus take the light and extension cord in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Atticus brings the light to the courthouse jail so that he can protect Tom Robinson.  Atticus learns that Tom Robinson, his client, is in danger.  A group of white men want to prevent the trial and lynch Robinson. He is warned by a small group of men that appear at his house.  He refuses to back down.  Atticus knows that the Cunninghams will target his client, so he plans to sit up all night with... Atticus brings the light to the courthouse jail so that he can protect Tom Robinson.  Atticus learns that Tom Robinson, his client, is in danger.  A group of white men want to prevent the trial and lynch Robinson. He is warned by a small group of men that appear at his house.  He refuses to back down.  Atticus knows that the Cunninghams will target his client, so he plans to sit up all night with Jim if that’s what it takes to protect him.  Atticus tells the men that he will make sure his client gets his fair shake at the law.  “Link, that boy might go to the chair, but he’s not going till ...
Post a Comment
Read more