In a Soviet classroom

In a Soviet classroom, a little boy is asked to define capitalism.
'The oppression of man by man', he says.
'Good', says the teacher, 'and what is communism?’
The little boy replies: 'The opposite'.

1 BELIEFS
The Soviet Union was a Communist country, which put the needs of the state ahead of personal human rights
The USA was a capitalist democracy which valued freedom and feared Communism.

2 AIMS
Stalin wanted huge reparations from Germany, and a ‘buffer’ of friendly states to protect the USSR from being invaded again.
USSR needed extra resources from East Europe to recover
USA and Great Britain was afraid of losing Europe to alien set of beliefs
Different goals for future of Europe – democracy or communism

RESENTMENT ABOUT HISTORY
The Soviet Union could not forget that in 1918 Britain and the USA had tried to destroy the Russian Revolution. Stalin also thought that they had not given him enough help in the Second World War.
Britain and the USA could not forget that Stalin had signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact with Germany in 1939.

SOCIALIST ISLAND
Joseph Stalin saw USSR as a socialist island surrounded by hostile capitalist environment and the goal was to create a circle of buffer states that would protect Soviet Union
As early as 1925 Stalin suggest that in future world a country have to choose her side – to become either Communist or Capitalist

OUT OF TWO EVILS
Soviet relations with the West further deteriorated when, one week prior to the start of the World War II, the Soviet Union and Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which included a secret agreement to split Poland and Baltic countries
Beginning one week later, in September 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland and the rest of Eastern Europe

YALTA CONFERENCE (FEB 1945)
Russia would join the United Nations.
divide Germany into four ‘zones’, which Britain, France, the USA and the USSR would occupy after the war.
bring Nazi war-criminals to trial.
help the freed peoples of Europe set up democratic and self-governing countries by helping them to (a) maintain law and order; (b) carry out emergency relief measures; (c) set up governments; and (d) hold elections (this was called the 'Declaration of Liberated Europe').
set up a commission to look into reparations.

POTSDAM (JUL 1946)
AFTER Germany’s surrender)
Allies were more strict to Russia
Disagreement on
1. the details of how to divide Germany.
2. the size of reparations Germany ought to pay.
3. Russian influence over the countries of eastern Europe.

DIFFERENCE OF OPINION
The Russians only understand one language - ‘how many armies have you got?’ I’m tired of babying the Soviets.
President Truman, writing in January 1946
What is surprising about the fact that the Soviet Union, worried about its future safety, wants governments friendly to it in Finland, Poland and Romania?
Stalin, writing in March 1946

It is useless to try to discover who made the first move to break the alliance. It is impossible to trace the first ‘broken promise’.

KENNON V. NOVIKOV
1. The Russians are determined to destroy the American way of life and will do everything they could to oppose America.
2. This is the greatest threat the US has ever faced.
3. The Soviets can be beaten.
4. The Soviets must be stopped.
5. This can be done without going to war.
6. The way to do it is by educating the public against Communism, and by making people wealthy, happy and free.
USA are planning new war
Capitalism is a hostile to communism system and it must be stopped
If not confronted USA would win world
Way out is to keep and increase armory