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Global History IV
Cold War
NAME: _________________________________________________________
THE COLD WAR – Policies of Containment
In order to stop Communism from spreading into other countries, the United States started a policy of Containment.
Examples of Containment were:
1. Truman Doctrine, 1947 United States gave aid to Greece and Turkey so they would not become Communist.
2. Marshall Plan, 1947 United States gave billions of dollars in aid to European countries so they could rebuild after
World War II. In this way the United States hoped the countries would not turn to Communism. The program was a
great success. Marshall Plan money was also offered to the Eastern Bloc countries, but they refused the money.
3. Berlin Blockade, 1949 The map below shows that the city of Berlin was located in East
Germany, which was part of the Eastern Bloc. However, part of the city (West Berlin) was part of West Germany (see
map below).
In 1948, the Soviet Union blockaded West Germany. They wanted the west to surrender it. If that happened, Stalin would
have shown that Communism couldn’t be contained. President Truman used airplanes from all over the world to supply
West Berlin and save it from Communism. The Berlin Airlift was a victory for the Western Bloc and for Containment.
4. Creation of NATO, 1949 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a military alliance. Members in 1949 included
the United States, England, France, Denmark, Iceland, Canada, Italy, and Norway. Today, Germany, Greece and
Turkey along with many other Eastern European nations belong. France has dropped out. These nations promise to go
to each other’s aid if the Eastern Bloc attacks any one of them. The Easter Bloc alliance was known as the Warsaw
Pact. Today, NATO still exists, but the Warsaw Pact does not.
The Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and the creation of NATO did stop Communism from spreading to new
countries in Europe after World War II.
Questions for discussion. Answer the following questions on a separate sheet of paper.
1. Explain what is meant by the policy of Containment.
2. List three examples of Containment.
3. Explain why each of the examples you listed in answer #2 were a success.
4. Why was the location of West Berlin a problem for NATO?
5. Why isn’t the location of Berlin a problem today?