TRUMAN DOCTRINE

DEFINITION

• When WWII was over, communism flourished in Eastern Europe and was growing towards the west. President Truman believed that all people should have liberty and freedom, he wanted to “contain” communism. So he created the Truman doctrine.

Cause

The Soviet Union wanted control of Greece and Turkey.
The Soviet Union wanted Turkey because they wanted control over the Dardenelles strait. The Dardenelles strait connected the Black Sea with the Mediterranean. Since the us did not want communism to spread, they wanted to aid turkey in stopping russia from taking over turkey. The reason why the us wanted to help Greece was because there was a communist rebellion that was trying to overthrow the government. The rebellion was backed up and aided by russia because russia wanted communism to spread. The us did not so they wanted to help aid the greece government in crushing the rebellion.

Characteristics

President Truman requested that Congress provide $400,000,000 worth of aid to both the Greek and Turkish Governments and support the dispatch of American civilian and military personnel and equipment to the region. Truman justified his request on two grounds. He argued that a Communist victory in the Greek Civil War would endanger the political stability of Turkey. Truman also argued that the United States was compelled to assist “free peoples” in their struggles against “totalitarian regimes.” In the words of the Truman Doctrine, it became “the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by outside pressures.”

SIGNIFIGANCE

• The point of the Truman Doctrine was to help Greece and Turkey. It had helped Greece with the fight against the rebellion by giving both countries money to help aid them in the fight. In the end the greece government had defeated the communist rebellion and for turkey, russia ended up pressuring turkey into letting them use the strait.