truman doctrine

• What were the aims of studying US policy shifts?

  To understand perceptions, responses, and thinking
• Who was George F. Kennan?

  Charge d'affaires at the US Embassy in Moscow
• Who was James F. Byrnes?

  Truman’s Secretary of State from 1945-1947
• What happened between the western powers and the USSR in 1946-1947?

  There was a complete breakdown in relations
• What did the Cold War do to political life in Europe?

  It stifled political life and divided Europe
• What regimes did Stalin impose in satellite states?

  Bureaucratic regimes similar to the USSR
• What was the impact of the radical impulses in Western Europe from 1944-1947?

  They were undermined by subordination to America
• What was the effect of the Marshall Plan in Western Europe?


  Countries rushed to join the Marshall Plan
• What was the stance of the USA regarding Stalin's actions post-Yalta and Potsdam?

  They believed he ignored agreements
• What was the Declaration on Liberated Europe?


  A document issued by the Allies at Yalta
• What were the main concerns of US policymakers during 1946-47?


  Germany, European economy, and Greece's civil war
• What were the two main contenders regarding Germany's future?

  Konrad Adenauer and Kurt Schumacher
• What did Stalin want for Germany?

  A united but weak and demilitarized Germany
• What was the significance of the formation of Bizonia?

  It signaled a split and economic recovery approach
• What was the outcome of the Moscow Conference of Foreign Ministers in Spring 1947?


  The Soviets tried to destroy Bizonia
• Who opposed the Soviet demands at the Moscow Conference?

  Ernest Bevin, the British foreign secretary
• What was the outcome of the London Conference of Foreign Ministers in Autumn 1947?


  It was a failed and divisive meeting
• Who were the leaders in the Greek civil war?

  Markos Vafiadis and Konstantinos Tsaldaris
• What triggered a fundamental reorientation of US policy in Europe?

  The outbreak of civil war in Greece
• What was the British strategy in the Greek civil war?


  To support the government forces against resistance
• What was Truman's response to the British withdrawal from Greece?

  He took on the responsibility to aid Greece
• What was the Truman Doctrine's primary aim?


  To prevent the expansion of USSR influence
• What was the significance of the Marshall Plan?

  It aimed to restore European economies
• What conditions were attached to the Marshall Plan aid?

  Spend on American goods and allow access
• How much aid did the Marshall Plan provide?

  US$13.5 billion to 16 countries
• What did Churchill call the Marshall Plan?

  The most unselfish act in history
• What were the key events/actions during the 1945-49 period for the USA and USSR?

  • Yalta and Potsdam conferences
  • Revolutions in satellite countries
  • Greek civil war and Truman doctrine announcement
  • Establishment of the Marshall Plan
  • Events in Germany (Bizonia, Berlin blockade)
  • US monopoly on atomic bomb
  • Kennan’s ‘long telegram’ and Churchill’s ‘iron curtain’ speech
• What was the impact of the Truman Doctrine on global military alliances?

  It led to the creation of military alliances against the USSR
• How did NSC-68 change US foreign policy?

  It shifted from passive to active containment
• What was Eric Foner's view on the Truman Doctrine?

  It set a precedent for aiding anti-communist regimes