Why Was The Cold War A Proxy War

The Cold War was one of the longest conflicts that the United States of America has been involved in. It was between the worlds two largest super powers at the time, The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or U.S.S.R and the United States of America. During this 45 year conflict, there was never any direct military conflict between the two, but there were other events such as the Korean War, Space Race, Arms Race, Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam War, and the creation of NATO along with many other events. Since there was never any direct attacks between the countries, you might think how was this a war. That’s why the Cold War is referred to as a proxy war, which is where countries use propaganda, political and economic actions, and the use of espionage.
Of course the US had to take action because of the creation of the Truman Doctrine, which was created to help countries that the Communists were trying to take control of. America was one of the primary participants in the war, even though they were backed by the United Nations. The US also believed that if the Soviets were to take Korea, it would be just the beginning of their campaign towards global domination. President Truman had said, “If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one place after another.” America was unable to free the entirety of the Korean Peninsula from Communism so a ceasefire was signed on July 27, 1953. The cease fire created a boundary between the two Koreas along the 38th Parallel with a 2 mile wide demilitarized zone, otherwise known as the DMZ