The Cold War

BEGINNING: US vs. USSR

• The Cold War can be considered as a confrontation of many aspects:
• Power Struggle between the United States and the USSR after WWII
• Political System Rivalry: Diplomacy vs. Communism
• Economic System Rivalry: Capitalism vs. Communism
• "Cold War"- US/USSR never engaged in warfare during this time period

Economic Systems

• Capitalism: Free Market Enterprise
• Privatization of businesses, encourage competition, private property rights
• Communism: Government-Controlled
• Government-owned businesses, limit competition, equal distribution of wealth
• Capitalism- individual economic freedoms, Communism- government-controlled economy

U.S. Foreign Policy

• Soviet countered U.S. containment with two strategies:
• Supporting independence revolutions
• The USSR supported the colonies that demanded independence from the West
• Military Aggrandizement
• The USSR wanted its military to match that of the United States (plus allies)

Kitchen Debate

• Richard Nixon vs. Nikita Khruschev (Capitalism vs. Communism)
• This debate expressed deep-seated tensions between the U.S. and the USSR
• Khruschev insulted American Capitalism after seeing the lavish kitchen appliances
• Kruschev called it "capitalized attitude toward women"
• Nixon emphasized economic freedom, saying that a "U.S. steel worker" could afford it