American Security and International Economic Policy during the Cold War - Essay Example

It became the goal of the United States to keep its own soil safe from the threat of communist nuclear attacks by carefully constructing a network of global alliances and neutralities that were designed to contain communism and promote democracy.

     The security policy of the United States during the Cold War was heavily centered on one tactic: the accumulation of nuclear bombs (Botti 45-47).  The nuclear arms race was primarily focused on the two world superpowers at the time: the United States and the Soviet Union.  Both countries, being at odds in terms of political and economic structures, were trying to prove the worth of democracy (in the US) and of communism (in the USSR) and this was the central point in the Cold War.  Given the international power of both countries in terms of military might and global alliances, both the Soviet Union and the United States lived in constant fear of the other and subsequently, both nations became involved in the so-called arms race to obtain as many nuclear bombs as possible.  This was a deterrent tactic on the part of both countries whereby it became clear that if either were to strike in an act of war, the other would retaliate to the fullest extent and cause maximum damage.  Ironically it was the huge stores of nuclear bombs that were meant to keep the United States and the Soviet Union from attacking one another and turning the Cold War into a real war.

     Another security policy employed in the United States during the Cold War was networking (Sumi and Salla 103).  The main objective of the American government at this time was the containment of communism around the world, and to stop the spread of an ideology it viewed as fundamentally flawed and dangerous, the US did its best to form alliances or simply maintain friendly relationships with those countries that were in close proximity to the Soviet Union.  For the most part, this meant the close observation of western European nations and in particular a high interest in the economic status of both West and East Germany.  Since World War II Germany was a divided nation, with the Westside adopting capitalism and democracy while the East remained communist.  Like the Korean and Vietnam wars, the struggles of West and East Germany became a physical battlefield for the ideals of a Cold War between two nations that would never formally take action (Ball and Arnold 132). 

     The goal of the United States is to remain a safe country while simultaneously oppressing communism meant that international networking was key, and this is why security policies and international economic policies were connected so closely during the Cold War.  The major influence of the United States over key western European nations came because of the War; in the aftermath of World War II a great deal of infrastructure and structural damage had been done to countries like the United Kingdom, Italy, Portugal, Norway and Sweden, and with the conception of the Marshall Plan the US had figured out how to use international foreign economic policy to its direct advantage over the Soviets (Bonds 180). 

     The Marshall Plan, otherwise known as the European Recovery Plan, channeled funds to ailing economies that promised to support capitalism and democracy in return.  For the most part, these countries were already pro-democracy and had no interest in the spread of communism, however, the Marshall Plan was extended on offer to the Soviet Union and East Germany if those countries would agree to American terms.  Russia calls this “dollar imperialism” (Grubel 180) and needless to say, neither country accepted American funding in exchange for their communist ideals.  After the funding plan was completed, all nations except for Germany had become economically stronger than in their pre-war years. 

     Essentially, the United States was forced into a networking solution to its security issues and because of this, we see how America extended its own strong economy to those countries that were both in need and in a position to help the American government achieve its goals of democracy and anti-communism.  This networking strategy also helped to calm suspicions that the United States and the Soviet Union would come to nuclear war over their differences because in obtaining allies throughout Europe the US was entitled to ensure each country that theirs would be protected from such violence.  The more allies the United States could gather, the less likely it was that the Soviet Union would feel making a nuclear attack.  Although tensions remained very strained between the two superpowers, their differences would never come to an all-out war because of the strategies of the United States in terms of both its security and international economic policies. 

     The relationship between America’s security policies and its international economic policies during the Cold War can, at times, be viewed as one and the same.  Two major issues faced the US: rebuilding the global economy after the War and keeping Americans safe from the threat of a Soviet attack.  By forging alliances with western European nations, creating strategic international bonds, building a nuclear arsenal, extending the Marshall Plan and networking with a lot of different countries, the United States was able to deal with both major issues following the Second World War and continuing into the Cold War years.