The main reason why the US introduced Marshall Aid was to prevent the spread of Communism. In 1946 almost the whole of Eastern Europe was Communist, this was due to the actions of Stalin, he wanted to build up a line of countries around Russia and use them as a “buffer zone” to protect the USSR from being attacked.
Britain had troops in Greece and was fighting a Civil War against the Communists in fear that it too would fall under Stalin's Communist rule. The USA stepped in when the British announced that they could no longer afford to keep their troops in Greece, Truman feared that the whole of Eastern Europe would become Communist (the idea of Communism was very popular in times of hardship, the communists believed that the wealth of the richest people should be shared out among the poor) so he agreed to pay for military supplies, weapons, economic aid and British troops to be sent to Greece and Turkey. The USA's aid soon became known as The Truman Doctrine. This was the idea that communism should not be allowed to grow and gain territory, and that it was America's 'duty' to fight for liberty. It was agreed that they would send resources to any Government that was threatened by communism.
The Truman Doctrine was significant as it divided the world, showing that Capitalism and Communism were in opposition, which suggested that the East and the West could no longer co-operate. This emphasised the many difference between them. The Marshall Plan started the Truman Doctrine in June 1947, when it was announced that $17 billion should be given to Europe to help rebuild their inefficient economy and prevent the spread of communism.
For the USA, Marshall Aid was introduced to make the idea of Capitalism appear more appealing, it was also introduced to try and prevent communism spreading. This now highlights how terrified they were of Communism and to what extent they would go to prevent it influencing the whole of Europe. For the countries in Europe that received aid through the Marshall Plan it was seen as a way of rebuilding their economies and preventing communism in their own country.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
-Marshall Plan: provide extensive aid from US to European countries in exchange for economic revival, free institutions, and power over money control. It was supported by George Marshall (secretary of state).…
- 2374 Words
- 10 Pages
Good Essays -
a. President Harry Truman alarmed by British weakness and the possibility of soviet expansion into the eastern Mediterranean, responded with the Truman Doctrine: said that the U. S. would provide money to countries that claimed they were threatened by Communist expansion…
- 2834 Words
- 12 Pages
Better Essays -
the prestige and the benefit of being the world’s undisputed economic power, the title also carried significant responsibilities. Consequently, the task of rebuilding the global infrastructure destroyed by World War II became a U.S. quandary. To accomplish the mission, the U.S. announced the Marshall Aid in 1947, providing Western Europe with $13 billion in aids enabling them to import food, consumer goods and industrial machinery for reconstruction. Moreover, to prevent the spread of communism under a containment policy, the U.S. not only underwrote the reconstruction of Western Europe and Japan, but also the rest of the world. Being the numéraire, while exporting dollars to underwrite the post-war global reconstruction soon proved to be unmanageable contradictions.…
- 4636 Words
- 19 Pages
Good Essays -
The Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, NATO, support for Chiang Kai-shek in China, and the American response to the North Korean invasion were all based on the foreign policy of containment in hopes that the United States could create a way to eliminate the threat of anymore Soviet expansion. The Truman Doctrine was a way for the United States to give aid to those who who were trying to stop the damage that the Soviets were causing. The Truman Doctrine was the main contributing factor to why the American people had support for Chiang Kai-shek in China. The Doctrine was also the reason why the United States supported the south after the North Korean invasion. The Marshall Plan had its role in the foreign policy of containment by suggesting…
- 271 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Keeley Stout Professor Smoot April 29, 2016 HIS 109 2-3:15 During the Cold War, the Truman Doctrine became the United State foreign policy. It promised aid to countries fighting against communist regimes. The Vietnam Conflict rose out of a commitment to nation building and a desire to contain communism. All the presidents from Truman to Nixon felt as if communism threatened American interests.…
- 639 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
While the U.S. promoted capitalism, the USSR continued to practice communism, denouncing the actions taken by the U.S. Following its policy of containment, the U.S. believed that it had the right to take part in affairs that would stop the spread of Communism. This included the aiding of countries who were struggling to recover after World War II, and faced the threat of subjugation by communist forces. In Document 2, which recalls the speech of President Truman to Congress, he suggested that it is the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting domination by outside pressure, referring to the necessity of helping Greece…
- 983 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The Truman Doctrine was also a big plan made by President Harry Truman. This plan was a counter act to the Soviet Union's plan of expansion during the Cold War. The British government announced that it could no longer furnish assistance to the military of Greece and Turkey. Truman administration thought that both nations were threated by communism and when had the chance they took a stance against the Soviet Union. After the United States promised they would do whatever needed to be done both economically and militarily to contain the spread of communism around the world.…
- 447 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
The main economic arm of this policy became known as the Marshal plan formed by Secretary of State George Marshal, it was an offer from the Unites States that they would provide aid to any country which was not communist in Europe trying to rebuild after World War 2. The Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan was first used to aid Turkey and Greece after Britain was no longer able to support them. President Harry Truman stated in his speech to Congress in March 1947 “I believe we must assist free peoples to work out their destinies in their own way.” He also believed that he had to “scare the hell” out of Congress to get his message across, when Secretary Marshal added his extension to the doctrine stating that the US would provide economic aid to all nations of devastated Europe was not directed “against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos. Its purpose should be the revival of a working economy in the world so as to permit the existence of political and social conditions in which free institutions can exist.”. The United State congress authorized a $13 Billion Dollar investment, which resulted in an extremely rapid growth of democratic Europe. Belgian economic historian Herman Van der Wee concludes the Marshall Plan was a "great success”: “It gave a new impetus to reconstruction in Western Europe and made a decisive contribution to the renewal of the transport system, the modernization of industrial and agricultural equipment, the resumption of normal production, the raising of productivity, and the facilitating of intra-European…
- 1137 Words
- 5 Pages
Powerful Essays -
President Truman made up a plan, in which he felt that there should be a policy of the United States to provide financial aid to countries who are trying to avoid domination from other countries. Truman gave $400 million in aid to Turkey and Greece (Doc. #2). This heightened pressure between the U.S. And other countries because of how strong the U.S. obviously was, compared to any other country. This was also a threat to other…
- 495 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
One weapon used by the US was an elaborate financial aid program. The Marshall Plan was a strategy to contain and smother the spread of communism. This decision was made public on June 5, 1947 by Secretary of State Marshall as seen in Document 3. A more specific pan to suppress the communist threat was the Truman Doctrine, a program to aid financially depressed countries in order to maintain their government and not succumb to communism. This included "giving Greece and Turkey $400 million in aid" as displayed in Document…
- 681 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Was an economic aid program developed right after the Truman doctrine to help European countries recover from WWII and resist Soviet expansion.…
- 2250 Words
- 9 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
George Kennan, our top diplomat who was stationed in Moscow, informed us that the Soviets have no desire to coexisting with capitalist countries, and that the triumph of communism was inevitable. The containment policy is based on Kennan’s analysis that “long-range policies” will provide a chance of halting “Russian expansive tendencies.” Truman, under his doctrine, stated that the US should give support to countries or people threatened by Soviet forces or communist uprisings. For example, the doctrine was used to give aid to Greece and Turkey, who were next on the Soviets list. The Marshall Plan also helped in providing European nations with financial aid as a way of recovering from…
- 595 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The United States foreign policy during the Cold War was containment, specifically of communism since Americans were still afraid of another Red Scare. The Marshal Plan enacted by president Truman provided financial aid to European countries. Encompassing 16 countries, the marshal plan allocated $13 billion to support Europe, preventing economic depression or recession and ensuring that Europe would not turn to communism as a result. Truman’s Truman Doctrine also changed the way America acted with foreign countries and allowed America to assist free nations who are resisting communism. One example of this would be the Berlin Airlift as the Soviet Union sought repercussions from Germany and wanted to prevent them from gaining power, so the Soviets invaded Germany.…
- 1693 Words
- 7 Pages
Good Essays -
To what extent were the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Aid successful at containing communism in 1948?…
- 878 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The war ended and the world was thrown into new territory, there were essentially two superpowers left in the world. Great Britain, France and Germany were all decimated either financially and/or physically, leaving only the United States and Russia to duel out for total supremacy. Harry Truman viewed this bipolar world as a benefit as long as the Untied States and the Soviet Union could remain buffered by friendly countries. Even before the Truman Doctrine was introduced to the joint congress, some of Truman's memoirs indicate that he saw Russia as a force to contain and be watched at all times . Harry Truman perpetuated the feeling that communism was evil, and something that had to be nipped in the bud. Truman was not diabolically opposed to the U.S.S.R. being communist, but at the same time he wanted to make sure that communism did not threaten the United States and its borders. This and a loyalty to war and peace time allies…
- 339 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays